The election of TOP 09 chief Markéta Pekarová Adamová to the Speaker of the Chamber of Deputies looks pretty likely. Although the ANO movement will have the most significant number of MPs, the winning coalition SPOLU (ODS, KDU-ČSL, and TOP 09) refuses to give the post to someone else for tactical reasons.
“They (ANO) are not the winners of the elections, and it would be a big tactical mistake to leave the presidency of the Chamber to them. The Speaker of the House can be crucial in a given situation because he can delegate the formation of the government. That is why we will not put it in the hands of the ANO leader. We have not fallen head over heels, ” Marian Jurečka, the head of the People’s Party, said.
He also noted that the SPOLU coalition is ready to negotiate and respect the outcome of the elections on the issue of proportional representation.
Pekarová Adamová, who led the SPOLU coalition in Prague, is currently regarded as the most popular candidate for the lower house, where she received nearly 40% of the vote. At the same time, she received the second-highest number of preferential votes ever, almost 50 000. STAN chair Vít Rakušan only surpassed her in the Central Bohemian Region.
A double role for Pekarová Adamová?
Pekarová Adamová made no secret before the elections that she was also interested in the Ministry of Labour and Social Affairs (MPSV). The question, therefore, remains what position she would agree with her colleagues on, given her strong electoral mandate.
There is also the possibility that she would leave the post of head of the MPSV to Olga Richterová, whom the Pirates would like to send there.
“Let’s talk first in SPOLU”
However, Pekarová Adamová said that filling the leadership of the Chamber of Deputies and individual ministries is not on the agenda. “We are not dealing with personnel at all for the time being,” she said.
It was also clear from her statement that she wanted to follow the agreed procedure. “First, it will be addressed within SPOLU, then with the Pirates and STAN, and then to the media,” she added.
The six seats in the House leadership will therefore be divided only between ANO, ODS, STAN, KDU-ČSL, TOP 09 and the Pirates.