Babiš triumphs: populists win parliamentary elections in the Czech Republic!

Babiš triumphs: populists win parliamentary elections in the Czech Republic!

After the parliamentary elections in the Czech Republic, the populist movement ANO under the leadership of Andrej Babiš won the majority. Preliminary results from the Czech Statistical Office (ČSÚ) show that ANO received around 35 percent of the vote, after 98 percent of ballot boxes had already been counted. This marks a return for Babiš after four years in opposition after the ruling coalition of SPOLU, led by Prime Minister Petr Fiala, only got 23 percent of the vote, down from 27.8 percent in 2021.

With voter turnout estimated at 68 percent, voter interest appears to have remained strong. The results of the election show that in addition to ANO, the mayor's party (STAN) was also elected with 11 percent, the right-wing populist SPD with 8 percent, the left-liberal Pirates with 9 percent and the right-wing conservative Motorists with 7 percent. In contrast, the left-wing alliance Stačilo!, which includes the communists, failed to meet the five percent electoral threshold.

Return to power

During his election campaign, Andrej Babiš promised to end arms supplies to Ukraine, sparking debate in a country that has so far delivered around 3.5 million rounds of ammunition. President Petr Pavel, on the other hand, emphasized that he would not appoint any members of the government who wanted to lead the Czech Republic out of the EU or NATO. This could pose a complication for future coalition formation, as Babiš needs at least two partners to form a majority government.

The ultra-right SPD could play a key role by acting as a kingmaker and is already calling for a referendum on leaving the EU and NATO, while also demanding the repatriation of over 383,000 Ukrainian refugees. Babiš also has the support of Viktor Orbán, who described the election victory as a good step for Europe, and Herbert Kickl of the FPÖ, who longs for a “patriotic turnaround in Europe”.

Electoral context and reforms

The House of Representatives election took place on October 3rd and 4th, 2025 and a total of 200 elected representatives were elected. An electoral law reform that came into force in July 2021 maintains the 14 constituencies and a threshold of 5 percent for parties. The hurdles for coalitions have been lowered so that parties have to achieve at least 8 percent with two partners, 11 percent with three partners and even 15 percent with four partners in order to win seats. This could make coalition negotiations more complex.

The political landscape in the Czech Republic has changed significantly in recent years. The coalitions that formed the majority in the last election in 2021 have dissolved, and Babiš' ANO has transformed from the liberal Renew Europe faction to the right-wing populist Patriots for Europe. The coming weeks will be crucial to see whether Babiš is able to form a stable government that ensures both domestic political stability and takes into account external relations, particularly with EU partner states.