Voters in Slovakia headed to the polls on april to elect a successor to Zuzana Čaputová, the country’s first female president. The first round of presidential election, held on 23 march, did not end up with a winner since no candidat has gotten half of the votes. This election is seen as a political battle between pro-UE supporters and those defending pro sovereign forein policy.
Now, two candidates still in the race. Former Foreign Minister Ivan Korčok, who had 42.13% of the votes late Sunday, is running against Peter Pellegrini who came in second position with 37.28%. This result was seen by the local press as a surprise given that most polls expected a clear victory for Pellegrini in the first round.
Considered as pro-west and pro NATO, Ivan Korčok if facing the head of Parlment, Peter Pellegrini, who is known to be a close ally of the current Prime Minister Robert Rico. He defends more sovereign voice of Slovakia and a sovereign foreign policy. On the other hand, Ivan Korčok, 59 years old, firmly supports his country’s membership in the EU and NATO.
The top two finishers will advance to a runoff on April 6 in the second round. The winner will be the country’s sixth head of state since Slovakia gained independence in 1993 after Czechoslovakia split in two.