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Czech Republic - Politics

Prime Ministers of the Czech Republic

Name	Entered Office	Left Office	Party
Václav Klaus	2 Jan 1993	17 Dec 1997	Civic Democratic Party (ODS)
Josef Tošovský	2 Jan 1998	17 Jul 1998	Independent
Miloš Zeman	17 Jul 1998	15 Jul 2002	Czech Social Democratic Party (CSSD)
Vladimír Špidla	15 Jul 2002	4 Aug 2004	Czech Social Democratic Party (CSSD)
Stanislav Gross	4 Aug 2004	25 Apr 2005	Czech Social Democratic Party (CSSD)
Jirí Paroubek	25 Apr 2005	4 Sep 2006	Czech Social Democratic Party (CSSD)
Mirek Topolánek	4 Sep 2006	8 May 2009	Civic Democratic Party (ODS)
Jan Fischer	8 May 2009	13 Jul 2010	Independent
Petr Necas	13 Jul 2010	10 Jul 2013	Civic Democratic Party (ODS)
Jirí Rusnok	10 Jul 2013	29 Jan 2014	Independent
Bohuslav Sobotka	29 Jan 2014	13 Dec 2017	Czech Social Democratic Party (CSSD)
Andrej Babiš	13 Dec 2017	17 Dec 2021	ANO 2011
Petr Fiala	17 Dec 2021	2025	Civic Democratic Party (ODS)
Andrej Babiš	06 Oct 2025		ANO 2011

Superficially it would appear that economically, politically and culturally, Czech society is probably the most successful, and the most stable, of all post-communist societies. The "Velvet Revolution" of November 1989 which abruptly ended communist rule in Czechoslovakia differed significantly from the way in which the communist system was overthrown in other Eastern European countries. The political change in Czechoslovakia, in contrast with, for example, the Soviet Union or Bulgaria, was not instigated by the ruling elites and largely accepted below, but brought about by the open revolt of the population. Perhaps the most significant feature of the "Velvet Revolution" was that it was initiated by students, actors, and other intellectuals, whose publicly expressed opposition to the communist regime was swiftly followed by the masses.

Although the creation of a post-socialist social order in Czechoslovakia and in what became the independent Czech Republic in 1993 has many similarities with the process which is now under way particularly in Poland and Hungary, it too had its unique features. In post-1989 Czechoslovakia, Slovaks habitually blamed the Czechs and Czechs blamed the Slovaks for all the ills of their common socialist past.

Czechs are usually critical of politicians but foreigners are not supposed to volunteer their opinion on Czech politics. In the spirit of the 19th-century Czech national "awakener" Frantisek Palacky and the founder of the First Czechoslovak Republic T G Masaryk, many Western attempts to define the Czech national character in this century have often emphasised the democratic quality of the Czech nation.

Prague Castle, the seat of Czech kings, and now of Czech presidents, is a well-known site, while the seat of the government [the Strakov Academy] and the residence of the Czech prime minister are relatively unidentifiable buildings somewhere in the center of Prague. From the breakup of Czechoslovakia until today, the Czech political system has been shaped as a parliamentary democracy, even though the Constitution does not explicitly call it that. The government is responsible to the lower chamber of the Parliament, and until 2013, both chambers elected the head of state at a joint session.

Despite holding such an indirect mandate, the Czech president had never been simply a figurehead and always played an important role in Czech politics. The tradition of strong presidents started with the first Czechoslovak President T. G. Masaryk, his successor Edvard Beneš, and continuing with the communist presidents. With the introduction of direct presidential elections in 2013, the strong position of the Czech head of state was enhanced. The president has won his own legitimacy from the citizens themselves.

The results of the 2013 early elections in the Czech Republic re-ordered the political landscape. Seven parties entered parliament, among which the Social Democrats are the strongest with 20.5 per cent of votes. Yet this was the weakest showing of an election winner in the history of the Czech Republic. Almost all of the established parties recorded losses, and at just under 60 percent, voter turnout was one of the lowest since 1989.

With his only recently established ANO movement, business tycoon Andrej Babiš managed to become the second-strongest force in the Chamber of Deputies right out of the gate, receiving 18.7 per cent of votes (the abbreviation ANO stands for “Action of Dissatisfied Citizens” and means “yes” in Czech). Babiš is its chairman, proprietor of the Czech agriculture and chemical corporation Agrofert, and since 2013 also owner of the Czech Republic’s largest media concern, Mafra, which publishes the dailies Mladá fronta Dnes and Lidové noviny. Since then, the foreign media liked to describe Babiš as a “Czech Berlusconi”. Babiš appealed to a dissatisfied and disillusioned electorate who no longer believe that politicians of the established parties can lead the country transparently. In the context of increasing mistrust of politics as such, the Czech electorate’s willingness to engage in alternatives with an uncertain course and goal seems extremely high.

There is a general trend in the West of a revolt against the traditional parties. They seem to be too rigid, too cumbersome, sometimes too corrupt and Babiš used this very skillfully in his campaign. He portrayed himself as an outsider who came to the Czech political mainstream to save the country and this has worked. The times are changing and the traditional parties, not just in the Czech Republic, are not very flexible in dealing with various new challenges associated with globalization and new challenges. People may feel that a party lead by an authoritarian leader may have more flexible answers.

Andrej Babis

Billionaire Andrej Babis’s populist ANO party took a commanding lead in the Czech Republic’s parliamentary election, but fell short of a majority. With ballots from more than 97 percent of polling stations counted 04 September 2025, ANO had 35 percent of the vote, according to the Czech Statistical Office. Prime Minister Petr Fiala’s centre-right Spolu (Together) alliance trailed with 23 percent.

Andrej Babiš is a Czech politician and businessman who served as Prime Minister of the Czech Republic from December 2017 to December 2021. Born in 1954 in Bratislava, then part of Czechoslovakia, Babiš built a substantial business empire before entering politics, becoming one of the wealthiest individuals in the Czech Republic through his conglomerate Agrofert, which operates in agriculture, food processing, chemicals, and media.

Babis was often compared with US President Donald Trump, former Italian Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi or Hungary's Prime Minister Viktor Orban. In reality, however, he stands for his very own, Czech brand of populism. When Babis appeared on the campaign trail, he generally speaks out against "the system" and "corrupt politicians," saying that the political establishment is incapable, bureaucratic and inefficient, that it disregards the people, divides up posts among its own, lies, cheats and wastes money. He claimed that as a successful entrepreneur, he would do things very differently, running the state like a company. He also pledged to listen to the people, clean up the country in their name and help them to lead good and dignified lives.

Although the billionaire liked to portray himself as the rebellious underdog in a hoodie and as the spokesperson of the poor and downtrodden, he has been part of the country's establishment all his life. Born in what is now Slovakia, he grew up in a family that belonged to the powerful elite of the communist dictatorship of Czechoslovakia. Due to his father's work as a trade representative, Babis lived for a time both in Switzerland and in France. After finishing high school in Geneva, he studied economics in Bratislava and later worked in foreign trade himself in a number of places, including Morocco.

His mysterious rise to the ranks of the super-rich in the Czech Republic began in the "wild 1990s," the period after the collapse of communism in Eastern Europe. In 1995, he assumed ownership of the agricultural and chemical holding Agrofert, which he had previously run as director. Babis tells a number of different versions of the story of how he came to own Agrofert, though many critics see them as vague and sometimes implausible. Agrofert encompasses about 250 companies worldwide, and Babis is currently estimated to be worth about $3.5 billion (€3 billion).

Babiš founded the political movement ANO 2011 in 2011, with the party name being an acronym standing for "Action of Dissatisfied Citizens" that also means "yes" in Czech. Ever since, ANO's most important slogan has been "Yes, things will get better!" and its promise that Babis will set things to rights in the country. The party positioned itself as a centrist, anti-establishment movement focused on fighting corruption and running the state like a business. His political rise was meteoric, and ANO quickly became a major force in Czech politics, appealing to voters frustrated with traditional political parties and promising efficient, business-like governance.

The voters gave him the opportunity to do just that: Babis was first finance minister from 2014 to 2017 and then prime minister from 2017 to 2021. His tenure as Prime Minister was marked by significant controversy, particularly regarding conflicts of interest related to his business holdings. While he was prime minister, there were mass protests in response to the scandals involving Babis and demonstrations for a "clean country." According to Babis, these were all propaganda activities organized by his enemies.

Despite placing Agrofert into trust funds, critics argued that he continued to benefit from his companies, which received substantial EU subsidies. The European Commission conducted investigations into potential misuse of EU funds, and Babiš faced ongoing accusations of fraud related to a case involving EU subsidies for a farm and conference center called Stork's Nest. These allegations dogged his administration throughout his time in office.

His tenure became mired in endless debates about his alleged involvement in cases of fraud and corruption. The Stork's Nest was one such case. The Stork's Nest is a wellness resort near Prague for which Babis was granted EU subsidies. It is alleged that he formally took a company out of the Agrofert Holding for a time to make it eligible for subsidies. Investigations into the Stork's Nest had been ongoing for almost a decade now. There had already been a number of rulings in the case, and in June 2025, a court in Prague ruled that the entire case had to be reopened.

The Stork's Nest was just one among many stories about Babis' alleged financial irregularities. For years, he has been in the headlines because of allegations of conflicts of interest, tax evasion, corruption, influencing the media and his past in the secret service of communist Czechoslovakia. He put his Agrofert Holding into trust funds in 2017. A court later determined that in doing so, he had obscured his role as owner. Babis was forced to sell his media companies in 2023 because of a law governing conflicts of interest.

Like many populist leaders elsewhere, he had long been agitating against migrants and, more recently, against Ukrainian refugees. Nevertheless, it has been reported that his business empire employs numerous workers from non-EU countries such as Vietnam or Ukraine, sometimes under inhuman conditions.

A court in Slovakia found that Babis once worked as an agent for the Czechoslovak secret service, the StB, under the code name "Bures," though Babis denies this, and the issue has been the subject of numerous lawsuits between him and the Slovakian government. Whenever such a controversy pops up, Babis either says that he has "done nothing illegal" or that "the system" wants to take revenge and destroy him.

On policy matters, Babiš took a pragmatic and often populist approach. He opposed EU migration quotas and took a hard line on immigration, aligning with other Central European leaders like Hungary's Viktor Orbán. His government increased public spending on pensions and social benefits, which proved popular with many voters. He was also critical of certain EU policies while maintaining that the Czech Republic should remain in the European Union, though he opposed adoption of the euro currency.

During the COVID-19 pandemic, Babiš's government faced criticism for its handling of the crisis, with the Czech Republic experiencing some of Europe's highest infection and death rates at various points. The government's response, including lockdown measures and vaccination campaigns, became politically contentious and contributed to declining public support for his administration.

Despite these challenges, Babiš remained a dominant figure in Czech politics, though his coalition lost the 2021 parliamentary elections to an opposition alliance led by Petr Fiala. The election was closely fought, and Babiš initially suggested he might try to form a government, but ultimately conceded. His leadership style was often described as direct and confrontational, and he frequently used his ownership of media outlets and social media presence to communicate directly with supporters, bypassing traditional political channels. Even after leaving office, Babiš continued to be an influential political figure and ran unsuccessfully for president in 2023.

Unlike his friend Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban, Babis does not view the European Union as the enemy. Although he is not the mouthpiece of Russian President Vladimir Putin, whenever there is talk of military support for Ukraine, he like to deflect the conversation, saying that he is "a diplomat, not a soldier." He has not so far had the political opportunity to reorganize Czechia, but it is not clear whether he actually wants to. It is possible that he is seeking the immunity that would come with being prime minister and would mean he no longer has to be questioned or appear in court.

Babis is a smooth — some observers would even say opportunistic — version of a populist, a restless man with a huge ego.