The first round of the presidential election will be held on Saturday, March 23. If a second round is necessary, it will be held two weeks later, on Saturday, April 6.
Parliament Chairman Peter Pellegrini, who said he will also be a candidate, announced the dates yesterday, Monday. The term of current President Zuzana Caputova ends on June 15, and she has said she won't run for re-election.
The Slovak President is elected in a direct vote for a five-year tenure. A second round of voting will be held if no candidate achieves 50 per cent or more in the first round. Only the numbers one and two go to the second round.
The main challenger of Peter Pellegrini for the job, Ivan Korcok, presented his case yesterday. He said yesterday that the President’s office should be a counterweight to the government.
The junior coalition party SNS should still field its own candidate, said Minister of the Environment Tomáš Taraba of SNS. He said SNS is the oldest party and therefore has the obligation to put forward its candidate. (TASR)
