PRAGUE (Reuters) – Czech billionaire and former Prime Minister Andrej Babis’s ANO party increased its lead over the main ruling parties before an October 3-4 parliamentary election, according to the latest opinion poll.
The centre-right SPOLU (Together) coalition, led by Prime Minister Petr Fiala, trails the main opposition ANO party by more than 10 percentage points, at 20.2% support versus 31.3% for Babis’s ANO, according to the poll by STEM agency for CNN Prima News, which was released on Sunday.
Polls show as many as seven groups winning seats in the lower house of parliament, although none is forecast to win a majority.
If it does win next month’s vote, ANO is expected to lead coalition talks to find votes from smaller parties to form a cabinet. The party is promising more spending, tax cuts and opposition to the European Union’s green policies.
Babis, an ally of Hungary’s Prime Minister Viktor Orban and the French far-right in the eurosceptic Patriots for Europe group in the European Parliament, may turn for support to the anti-EU and pro-Russian SPD and Stacilo! parties or the Motorists party.
ANO officials have said the party will not accept demands threatening the country’s place within the EU or NATO.
ANO SPOLU SPD STAN Pirati Stacilo! Motoriste
Sobe
Sep 14 31.3 20.2 12.5 10.0 10.0 7.4 6.0
Sep 07 30.7 20.3 12.9 10.5 9.2 7.4 5.5
Aug 31 31.2 20.9 12.8 10.1 8.9 6.5 5.1
Aug 24 32.7 21.3 11.0 10.9 8.5 7.0 3.9
Aug 17 32.5 20.1 12.1 10.8 9.2 7.1 4.7
Aug 10 31.1 21.3 13.2 10.5 8.1 8.0 4.9
Aug 03 31.5 20.8 13.8 10.3 8.3 7.5 4.2
Jul 27 32.9 21.2 12.5 12.0 7.6 7.2 4.1
Jul 20 31.5 19.4 12.8 12.2 8.1 7.4 3.5
Jul 13 30.9 19.9 12.4 13.2 8.0 6.3 3.5
Jul 06 30.9 20.5 13.9 12.3 7.9 5.0 4.0
Jun 29 31.9 20.8 13.0 10.6 7.8 4.6 4.8
** ANO (YES, Action by Dissatisfied Citizens) – centrist, populist; main opposition party of billionaire and former Prime Minister Andrej Babis; part of the anti-Brussels Patriots for Europe group in European Parliament
** SPOLU (Together)- centre-right coalition led by the Civic Democrats of Prime Minister Petr Fiala; main government party
** SPD (Direct Democracy Party) – far-right, wants to quit NATO and EU, pro-Russian
** STAN (Mayors and Independents) – liberal, centrist pro-EU party, wants closer integration and adoption of the euro; junior government party
** Pirati (Pirates) – liberal, centrist party with focus on anti-graft and transparency agenda, pro-European integration, pro-euro; were part of current government until last year
** Stacilo! (Enough!) – far-left grouping around the former Communist Party; anti-EU, anti-NATO, pro-Russian; includes the diminished former ruling Social Democrats party; not represented in current parliament
** Motoriste Sobe (Motorists for Themselves) – right-wing party fighting EU’s green policies; not represented in current parliament
(Reporting by Jason Hovet; Editing by Gareth Jones)
