Who will win the Czech Senate elections in 2024?

By the News.Az Team

The Czech Senate elections, in which one-third of the members of this legislative body will be elected, are scheduled for September 20 and 21, 2024. They will be held concurrently with regional elections, with a potential second round taking place a week later if necessary. These elections are the last Senate elections during the term of Petr Fiala's cabinet, which makes them particularly significant for both the ruling coalition and opposition parties.

The upcoming Senate elections are crucial for the government coalition led by Prime Minister Petr Fiala. Of the 27 seats up for election, the parties of the ruling coalition and their allies will defend 22 seats. Opposition parties hold only two of the seats up for election, while three seats are currently held by independent candidates.

After the 2018 Senate elections, two of the independent candidates who were elected joined parliamentary party groups: Ladislav Faktor joined the ODS and TOP 09 group, and Jitka Chalánková became a member of the KDU-ČSL group . Only Pavel Fischer remained formally independent.

Throughout the current term, there has been only one by-election in the Senate, held in the 32nd electoral district of Teplice, originally occupied by ODS member and Senate President Jaroslav Kubera. Following his death, a by-election was held in Teplice in 2020, in which another ODS member, Hynek Hanza, won the seat.

Several candidates who were unsuccessful in the 2018 and 2023 Czech presidential elections will be defending their seats in the Senate, including Jiří Drahoš, Pavel Fischer, and Marek Hilšer. The term of one member of the Fiala Cabinet, Minister of Education Mikuláš Bek, is also ending; however, Bek has decided not to run for re-election.

One-third of the 81 Senate members are elected every two years, with senators serving six-year terms. Members of the Senate are elected in single-member constituencies using a two-round system. Candidates must be nominated by one or more registered political parties or collect at least 1,000 signatures independently in their constituency. There are no term limits for incumbent senators.

As in the 2022 elections, several parties have formed varying degrees of formal alliances across different electoral districts. Unlike two years ago, the parties of the Spolu alliance have not signed a pre-election memorandum and are mostly running candidates individually. An exception is Jiří Drahoš in Prague, who is supported by all parties in Fiala's government, and Leopold Sukovský from Ostravak, whose candidacy is also supported by all three parties.

The Czech Pirate Party, SEN 21 , and the Green Party have announced cooperation in 10 of the 27 electoral districts. Three candidates will be nominated by SEN 21, five by the Pirates, two by the Greens, and one candidate will be nominated jointly by SEN 21 and the Pirates.



The coalition of Přísaha and the Motorists has agreed to field the leader of Přísaha as their joint candidate.

Most of the seats up for election—13 out of 27—are held by members of the Spolu alliance: 10 by ODS, two by KDU-ČSL, and one by TOP 09. The STAN-led bloc will defend seven seats, while the progressive bloc consisting of Pirates, SEN 21, and the Greens will have one candidate in two districts, with one candidate from the Pirates and one from SEN 21.

The opposition holds only two of the seats up for election in 2024, including the only Senate seat held by SOCDEM in Karviná. Three senators elected as independents will also be defending their seats in the upcoming elections, although only two have decided to participate.

The political climate in the Czech Republic is currently characterized by significant public scrutiny of the government, with issues such as living standards, the cost of living, and migration prominently featured in the public agenda. Opposition parties are expected to leverage these issues to challenge the incumbent government, especially as the election campaigns intensify.

The economic situation in the Czech Republic is expected to improve slightly, with GDP growth projected to reach 1.7% next year. This economic forecast may influence public opinion and the political landscape ahead of the elections. Additionally, the unity of the five-party ruling coalition is seen as crucial for maintaining government stability during this period of political testing.

News.Az