Petr Pavel, a retired NATO military officer, launched his campaign for the Czech presidency as a potential front-runner in next year’s contest, which could see him face off against the country’s controversial former billionaire premier.
(Bloomberg) — Petr Pavel, a retired NATO military officer, launched his campaign for the Czech presidency as a potential front-runner in next year’s contest, which could see him face off against the country’s controversial former billionaire premier.
Pavel, an independent who vows to be a steady hand through Europe’s security and energy crises, has emerged as the only serious candidate so far to pose a challenge to Andrej Babis, whose tenure as premier was weighed down by accusations of fraud and conflicts of interest.
Babis, who was ousted from office late last year, has yet to announce his candidacy for the election slated for January 2023. The winner will succeed President Milos Zeman, who was a vocal supporter of stronger ties with Russia before President Vladimir Putin ordered the invasion of Ukraine in February.
“Difficult times demand a leader who will listen to different views, to everyone involved, to find a compromise,” Pavel said in a statement on Tuesday. Czechs face “many common enemies — surging prices, poverty, war,” he said.
Pavel would defeat Babis, whose ANO party leads in most polls, in a potential one-on-one match-up, according to a survey published last month by pollster Median. Should no candidate win more than 50% of the vote in the first round on Jan. 13-14, the two top contenders will go to a runoff.
The Czech president holds limited political powers, but has scope to appoint the prime minister and top officials. Zeman, a critic of aggressive monetary tightening, overhauled the central bank’s board through appointments, swinging the bank’s policy direction.
The new Czech head of state will confront a public that’s been rattled by rising energy bills and risks of shortages in the coming heating season. Tens of thousands of protesters gathered on Saturday in central Prague, the largest show of public discontent in three decades.
Pavel, 60, is a retired army general who served as chairman of the NATO Military Committee for three years until 2018. A lifelong professional soldier, Pavel has come under scrutiny for serving in the military in communist-ruled Czechoslovakia.
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