Czech billionaire Prime Minister Andrej Babis wins vote but falls short of majority
- Preliminary results showed Babis’ ANO party came first with 28 per cent of the vote, despite accusations of financial impropriety
- A potential partner for ANO could be the far-right, anti-Muslim Freedom and Direct Democracy (SPD) movement led by Tokyo-born entrepreneur Tomio Okamura
Czech Prime Minister Andrej Babis won a general election on Saturday but will struggle to put together a parliamentary majority, meaning any new government could be weeks or even months away.
Preliminary results showed the populist billionaire’s ANO party came first with 28 per cent of the vote, despite widespread accusations of financial impropriety and just a week after he was named in the Pandora Papers investigation.
The Together alliance of the right-wing Civic Democrats, the centre-right TOP 09 and the centrist Christian Democrats came in second with 26 per cent with just over 80 per cent of the votes counted.
A grouping of the anti-establishment Pirate Party with the Mayors and Independents (STAN) movement scored 15 per cent.
The two alliances would be able to form a majority in the 200-seat parliament, garnering 103 seats together to ANO’s 75, according to a projection by Czech TV.