Babiš winner of elections in Czechia: Forms government with hard right, Dodik immediately congratulated

(Patria) - Czech Prime Minister Petr Fiala said on Saturday that he congratulated opposition ANO party leader Andrej Babiš on his victory after ANO won nearly 35 percent of the vote in the general election.

ANO defeated the coalition of Petr Fiala, Spolu, which won 23 percent of the vote, according to results from more than 99% of polling districts.

The Czech populist party ANO will seek to lead a single-party government, its leader Andrej Babiš said on Saturday after the group achieved what he called a "historic" result in the parliamentary elections, but did not win a majority.

Babiš, a billionaire and former prime minister, said ANO would talk to the far-right SPD and the Motorists party, which opposes EU green policies, to find support for its government.

According to partial results, six parties were above the 5 percent threshold to win seats in the 200-member lower house.

When Babiš, the seventh richest Czech according to Forbes, was in power between 2017 and 2021, he opposed the Green Deal and EU asylum policy, but remained a loyal member of the twenty-seven. In the meantime, he joined the sovereignist camp of European parties.

After declaring victory, Babiš received congratulations from SNSD leader Milorad Dodik.

- Andrej Babiš's victory in Czechia is not just an electoral victory – it is a voice that clearly says that the fate of a state can only be shaped by its own people, not by Brussels bureaucrats whom no one ever elected.

That path of Europe is a path we understand in Republika Srpska as well. Just as Czechia defends its right to decide, so we defend ours – to choose, decide and live freely.

Neither in Brussels, nor in Sarajevo, nor with any Schmidt is there a force that can outvote the people!

This is yet another confirmation that the time of the people and free decisions is coming. In Czechia, in Srpska, and across Europe - he stated.