London Daily

Focus on the big picture.
Monday, Sep 01, 2025

Former NATO general, ex-prime minister seen leading Czech presidential election

Former NATO general, ex-prime minister seen leading Czech presidential election

Czechs voted on Friday and Saturday to pick a new president, former Chairman of the NATO Military Committee and Czech Army General Petr Pavel
The post does not carry executive authority but has significant powers in appointing prime ministers, central bank chiefs and nominating judges for the constitutional court. Presidents also have a limited say in foreign affairs and are chief army commanders.

Any of top three candidates - retired General Petr Pavel, opposition leader Andrej Babis who was prime minister in 2017-2021, and economics professor Danuse Nerudova -- would likely be more pro-Western than Zeman, who promoted tighter ties with China and, until the full invasion of Ukraine last year, Russia.

Pavel, 61, and Nerudova, 44, are strongly pro-Western and support further military aid for Ukraine as well as adoption of the euro. They would not have decision-making power in those affairs but could set the agenda in public and political consultations.

Billionaire businessman Babis would be a smaller change as he shares Zeman's warm relations with Hungary's Viktor Orban, who has been at odds with European Union partners over rule of law. Babis has also spoken against more Czech military aid for Ukraine.

The current centre-right government which decides that policy is among Kyiv's staunchest supporters in the West.

Pavel and Babis each led two of the final opinion polls, making them the main candidates to qualify for an expected run-off round in two weeks.

Pollsters and betting agencies gave Pavel an edge over Babis in the second round as he is likely to attract more of the people voting for the six other candidates who will not make it past this first round.

Voter Filip Jurak said Pavel was the only choice for him. "He speaks well, he has experience from the international scene," Jurak said, preparing to vote in a Prague school. "He is the most suitable candidate for this representative function."

Nerudova and Pavel - head of NATO's military committee in 2015-2018 - have been endorsed by the Cabinet, while Babis has framed the vote as a show of dissatisfaction with the government's response to high inflation and energy prices.

Running with Zeman's backing, Babis has pledged to put pressure on the Cabinet to provide more aid to households, and to bring checks on the coalition which has majority in both houses in parliament.

That message worked for some voters.

"The expectation is that there will be a little bit of balancing versus the government," Lubomir Hokr said after casting his vote in Prague.

Polling stations were to be open from 8 a.m. (0700 GMT) until 2 p.m. (1300 GMT) on Saturday. Results were expected on Saturday afternoon.
Newsletter

Related Articles

0:00
0:00
Close
WhatsApp is rolling out a feature that looks a lot like Telegram.
Investigations Reveal Rise in ‘Sex-for-Rent’ Listings Across Canada Exploiting Vulnerable Tenants
Chinese and Indian Leaders Pursue Amity Amid Global Shifts
European Union Plans for Ukraine Deployment
ECB Warns Against Inflation Complacency
Concerns Over North Cyprus Casino Development
Shipping Companies Look Beyond Chinese Finance
Rural Exodus Fueling European Wildfires
China Hosts Major Security Meeting
Chinese Police Successfully Recover Family's Savings from Livestream Purchases
Germany Marks a Decade Since Migrant Wave with Divisions, Success Stories, and Political Shifts
Liverpool Defeat Arsenal 1–0 with Szoboszlai Free-Kick to Stay Top of Premier League
Prince Harry and King Charles to Meet in First Reunion After 20 Months
Chinese Stock Market Rally Fueled by Domestic Investors
Israeli Airstrike in Yemen Kills Houthi Prime Minister
Ukrainian Nationalist Politician Andriy Parubiy Assassinated in Lviv
Corporate America Cuts Middle Management as Bosses Take On Triple the Workload
Parents Sue OpenAI After Teen’s Death, Alleging ChatGPT Encouraged Suicide
Amazon Faces Lawsuit Over 'Buy' Label on Digital Streaming Content
Federal Reserve Independence Questioned Amid Trump’s Push to Reshape Central Bank
British Politics Faces Tumultuous Autumn After Summer of Rebellions and Rising Farage Momentum
US Appeals Court Rules Against Most Trump-Era Tariffs
UK Sought Broad Access to Apple Users’ Data, Court Filing Reveals
UK Bank Shares Dive Over Potential Tax on Sector
Germany’s Auto Industry Sheds 51,500 Jobs in First Half of 2025 Amid Deepening Crisis
Bruce Willis Relocated Due to Advanced Dementia
French and Korean Nuclear Majors Clash As EU Launches Foreign Subsidy Probe
EU Stands Firm on Digital Rules as Trump Warns of Retaliation
Getting Ready for the 3rd Time in Its History, Germany Approves Voluntary Military Service for Teenagers
Argentine President Javier Milei Evacuated After Stones Thrown During Campaign Event
Denmark Confronts U.S. Diplomat Over Covert Trump-Linked Influence in Greenland
Starmer Should Back Away from ECHR, Says Jack Straw
Trump Demands RICO Charges Against George Soros and Son for Funding Violent Protests
Taylor Swift Announces Engagement to NFL Star Travis Kelce
France May Need IMF Bailout, Warns Finance Minister
Chinese AI Chipmaker Cambricon Posts Record Profit as Beijing Pushes Pivot from Nvidia
After the Shock of Defeat, Iranians Yearn for Change
Ukraine Finally Allows Young Men Aged Eighteen to Twenty-Two to Leave the Country
The Porn Remains, Privacy Disappears: How Britain Broke the Internet in Ten Days
YouTube Altered Content by Artificial Intelligence – Without Permission
Welcome to The Definition of Insanity: Germany Edition
Just a reminder, this is Michael Jackson's daughter, Paris.
Spotify’s Strange Move: The Feature Nobody Asked For – Returns
Manhunt in Australia: Armed Anti-Government Suspect Kills Police Officers Sent to Arrest Him
China Launches World’s Most Powerful Neutrino Detector
How Beijing-Linked Networks Shape Elections in New York City
Ukrainian Refugee Iryna Zarutska Fled War To US, Stabbed To Death
Elon Musk Sues Apple and OpenAI Over Alleged App Store Monopoly
2 Australian Police Shot Dead In Encounter In Rural Victoria State
Vietnam Evacuates Hundreds of Thousands as Typhoon Kajiki Strikes; China’s Sanya Shuts Down
×