![]() Although his campaign was not particularly inventive (in fact it was fairly conservative in its approach and messaging), his behaviour personified the his campaign's motto: "order and peace". ![]() By the time the presidential elections rolled around, experts believed that the billionaire would likely lose to any candidate who could unify the anti-Babis vote. This was reflected in general elections in which Babis´s ANO suffered from consecutive defeats. Especially the educated, the young and the citizens in big cities came to see him as a political evil. Subsequent years revealed, however, that demagoguery and twisting the truth spoke to his political style, that his managerial skills were suspect at best and that he was a man for himself more than for others. Simply put, Andrej Babis is the Czecho(slovak) watered-down version of Donald Trump.Īn unscrupulous businessmen turned into a media-savvy politician, Babis started a popular movement that propelled him into the premier's seat. The first reason has everything to do with his rival. Meanwhile his main opponent Andrej Babis had already been a prime minister and the fourth richest man in the country. According to public surveys from that time only 65 per cent Czechs knew who he was. ![]() While a decorated general and military diplomat, he was a fairly obscure figure. When his campaign began two years ago, his rallies in Czech towns could attract as little as 10 to 15 people. His success nevertheless cannot be seen as preordained. Pavel's victory was predicted by several polling agencies. The support also surpassed anything that the current president Zeman ever received and with a record voter turnout (70 percent came to vote, a number not seen since the 1990s) the president-elect will assume office with a particularly strong mandate. His 58 percent to his opponent's 42 represent an unusually high margin in a run-off election. For the Czechs, it sends a signal that unhinged populism and vitriolic campaigning does not necessarily win elections.įor Europeans, it is a sign that democracy - though bitterly tested in recent years - is alive and kicking. While a decorated general and military diplomat, he was a fairly obscure figure (Photo: Wikimedia)
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