MONITORING DESK
ISLAMABAD: The Czech presidential is being held on Friday with a billionaire, a general, and an academic leading a likely two-round vote seen as too close to call.
The winner of the election will replace Milos Zeman, an outspoken political veteran, following a period marked by the country’s 2022 EU presidency as the war in Ukraine stormed.
The winning candidate will face record inflation in the Central European country of about 10.5 million people, as well as swelling public finance deficits related to the war in Ukraine. Most of the Central European countries are facing financial issues due to the ongoing war in Ukraine.
Unless a candidate grabs more than 50 percent outright, which seems unlikely, the two top contenders will go head-to-head into the second round on January 27-28.
A political scientist at the Metropolitan University Prague, Petr told AFP that if someone asks him about the winner he wouldn’t bet.
Having a populist stature, ex-prime minister Andrej Babis, retired general Petr Pavel and university professor Danuse Nerudova are competing to become the fourth president since Czech Republic was founded in 1993 following the collapse of the then Soviet Union.
Three frontrunners for presidential slot
As reported by Forbes magazine, business tycoon and former prime minister Babis, 68, is the fifth wealthiest person in the Czech Republic whereas Pavel, 61, is a former paratrooper who was ornamented as a hero of the Serbo-Croatian war during which he helped to free French troops from a war zone. Pavel went on to be the chief of the Czech general staff and chair of NATO’s military committee.
While Nerudova, 44, the youngest frontrunner among the three contenders, has a strong focus on social issues and is counting largely on the backing of younger voters.
