Slovakia elects pro-Russian parliamentary speaker as president in tight runoff
Parliamentary speaker Peter Pellegrini secured victory as
Slovakia’s president with 53% of the vote, surpassing former foreign minister
Ivan Korčok’s 44.58% in the April 6 runoff, the country’s news outlet
Aktuality reported on April 7.
His win strengthens the ruling coalition led by pro-Russian
Prime Minister and SMER-SD party leader Robert Fico.
Throughout the campaign, Pellegrini repeatedly accused the
pro-EU, pro-NATO, and pro-Ukrainian Korčok of attempting to involve Slovakia in
the Russia-Ukraine conflict and advocated for an immediate ceasefire and peace
talks between the two nations.
He also argued that sanctions against Moscow were often
ineffective and had a detrimental impact on the Slovak people and Bratislava’s
national interests. However, Pellegrini does not oppose the European Union’s
unified stance on the Ukraine situation, but rather suggests assessing the
economic ramifications of sanctions on EU member states.
In the initial round of the election on March 23, Korčok
outpaced Pellegrini with 42.5% of the vote compared to 37%, but neither
candidate secured the absolute majority required to avoid a runoff.
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