Czechia Legislative election 2017 — Results

Background

The Czech legislative election of 20–21 October 2017 was a watershed that broke the dominance of the country's traditional parties. The populist ANO movement of the billionaire businessman Andrej Babiš won a commanding victory with 29.6% of the vote and 78 of the 200 seats, almost tripling the tally of the second-placed party and producing the most fragmented Chamber of Deputies in Czech history, with nine parties crossing the threshold.

How the country is governed

Czechia is a parliamentary republic. The 200-seat Chamber of Deputies (Poslanecká sněmovna) is elected every four years by proportional representation using the D'Hondt method in the country's 14 regions (kraje), which serve as multi-member constituencies. A party must win at least 5% of the national vote to enter parliament (higher thresholds apply to coalitions). Governments need the confidence of the Chamber; the separately elected President appoints the prime minister but does not run the executive. The Senate, the upper house, is elected separately and is not renewed in these elections.

The run-up to the vote

The outgoing government had been a coalition of the Social Democrats (ČSSD), ANO and the Christian Democrats (KDU-ČSL). Babiš, who had served as finance minister, campaigned as an anti-establishment outsider promising to "run the state like a firm", cut waste and bypass conventional politics — even as he faced fraud allegations over EU subsidies (the "Stork's Nest" affair). The established parties, from the centre-right ODS to the Social Democrats, struggled to counter his appeal, while new movements such as the Pirates and the far-right Freedom and Direct Democracy (SPD) of Tomio Okamura surged on anti-corruption and anti-immigration messages.

The results in detail

ANO won 29.6% and 78 seats. The centre-right Civic Democrats (ODS) came a distant second on 11.3% and 25 seats. The two insurgent newcomers tied for third: the Pirates took 10.8% and SPD 10.6%, 22 seats each. The big losers were the Social Democrats, who collapsed from governing party to 7.3% and 15 seats, level with the Communists (KSČM), also on 15 — a historic low for both pillars of the old left. The Christian Democrats, TOP 09 and the Mayors (STAN) cleared the threshold with single-digit shares. ANO finished first in every one of the 14 regions, a nationwide sweep underlining the breadth of its support.

After the vote

Forming a government proved difficult: most parties refused to serve under a prime minister facing criminal charges. Babiš first led a minority ANO cabinet that lost a confidence vote, then in 2018 formed a minority coalition of ANO and the Social Democrats, tolerated in parliament by the Communists — the first time since 1989 that the KSČM had supported a government. The arrangement governed until 2021, marked by Babiš's dominance, recurrent conflicts of interest and a combative relationship with the opposition and the EU.

Compiled and reviewed from official results by ElectioMap. See our data methodology.