Chain-smoking Czech President Milos Zeman, who once confessed to daily diet of nine alcoholic drinks, wins second term
Milos Zeman has divided the nation with his pro-Russia stance, support for closer ties with China, and strong anti-migrant and anti-Muslim rhetoric
The Czech Republic’s pro-Russia president won a second five-year term after beating a political newcomer viewed as more Western-oriented in a run-off vote.
President Milos Zeman’s victory confirmed the political direction set during the country’s parliamentary election, the result of which was seen as part of an anti-establishment wave sweeping Western democracies.
Zeman is a close ally of populist billionaire Andrej Babis, whose ANO (YES) movement scored a landslide victory in the October election.
With the two men in charge, the Czech Republic is likely to become more critical of European Union policies on issues such as immigration.
“We can expect the government to be less pro-Western than the previous government,” Josef Mlejnek, a scholar of democracy and Central Europe at Prague’s Charles University said.
With all the votes counted, the Czech Statistics Office said Zeman received 51.4 per cent of the vote during the two-day run-off election.