The presidency of the Christian Democrats (KDH) said they were still against a coalition with Smer leader Robert Fico in a statement on Friday, but cooperation could be on the cards in exchange for restrictions on abortion access, according to several reports.
Last week, the future of Slovakia seemed to depend on Peter Pellegrini and his Hlas party, who came in third and could move the needle between a pro-Russian government of Smer and runner-up Progressive Slovakia. Pellegrini’s kingmaker position could, however, be weakened by a deal between Robert Fico and the leader of KDH, Milan Majerský.
It was reported by multiple publications that the husband of MEP Miriam Lexmann (EPP) is tempted to quit negotiations with the progressives, ending their hopes of governing. After meeting with Fico last Thursday, Majerský said his party is “heading to the opposition”.
“The agreement between Fico and Majerský includes that they will also give in somewhat regarding abortion, plus the transfer of euro funds to the municipalities,” wrote the former leader of Christian Democrats, Alojz Hlina, on social media. Majerský is the president of one of Slovakia’s regions.
On Friday, the presidency of the Christian Democrats put out a statement saying that they are still against a coalition with Fico but did not address the reports of a secret deal not to enter a coalition with the progressives.
Such a decision would also limit Pellegrini’s negotiation power, as he could no longer use the offer from progressives for the prime minister’s seat to get the same offer from Smer, likely leaving him with the speaker of the parliament position.
During a TV debate on Sunday, Slovak President Zuzana Čaputová said that she would have a problem with the nomination of a person charged with a crime to the position of Interior Minister. Former Smer Interior Minister Robert Kaliňák has been charged twice, but both of his charges were dropped by the Prosecutor General using a contested paragraph 363.
The power of the president to veto minister nominations is unclear. In 2018, then-president Andrej Kiska protested an Interior Minister nomination after photographs were leaked showing the nominee during a birthday celebration with Kaliňák. Constitutional lawyers called the decision “on the edge of constitutional powers”.
(Barbara Zmušková | Euractiv.sk)
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