the populist party opposed to aid to Ukraine wins the legislative elections

The Slovak populist party Smer-SD won the legislative elections in Slovakia on Saturday September 30, according to the count of almost all the votes. The vote in this country of 5.4 million inhabitants, a member of the EU and NATO, is considered decisive in knowing whether Slovakia can stay on its pro-Western course or turn more towards Russia. The Smer-SD had promised during the election campaign to stop aid to neighboring Ukraine.

Contrary to the results of two exit polls, the party of former Prime Minister Robert Fico obtained 23.3% of the vote, ahead of the centrist Progressive Slovakia (PS) party supported by 17.03% of voters. , after the counting of 99.43% of the ballots. The final results are expected Sunday morning. Smer-SD said it would not comment on the vote until later on Sunday

An anti-EU and anti-LGBT+ party

Slovak President Zuzana Caputova said this week she would entrust the formation of the next government to the leader of the winning party, regardless of who she is. “personal preference” as a former member of Progressive Slovakia. During a stormy electoral campaign, marked by particularly high rates of online disinformation and which gave rise to several brawls between candidates, Robert Fico attacked the EU and NATO as well as to the LGBT+ minority.

The winner of the election will need help from smaller parties to form a majority coalition in the 150-seat parliament. This new government will replace that of the center-right coalition in power since 2020, which has changed three times in three years and which has provided considerable military and humanitarian aid to Ukraine.