Liberal Robert Golob, a businessman recently converted to politics, led elections in Slovenia on Sunday, ahead of outgoing Prime Minister Janez Jansa, who fell after a mandate marred by attacks on democracy, according to his critics.
Now we can say that our goal has been achieved: this victory will allow us to liberate our country.launched Robert Golob, 55, from his home, where he was isolated because of COVID-19.
At his headquarters in the capital, Ljubljana, the speech was greeted with applause and cheers.
The Freedom Movement (GS) won by 34.5% of the vote, against 23.6% for the Slovenian Democratic Party (SDS) of the conservative Mr. Jansa, after counting 99% of the votes.
Omnipresent in the field of politics for three decades, the 63-year-old leader acknowledged his defeat and told himself willing to work together for the common good.
Bitterly, however, he warned his opponent: It’s easy to buy posters, have the support of the media and the so -called civil society, but none of them can help you with the difficult task that awaits you.
Slovenes rushed to the polls throughout the day to elect their representatives during the single ballot round that took place against the backdrop of an uprising against government action, which has been controversial for months in street.
This is the most important election since independence in 1991 of this country of two million inhabitants from the former Yugoslavia and entered the European Union in 2004, assured Jansa Jenull, one of the leaders of the protest movement.
The population is there: turnout is close to 70%, a peak since 2000, higher than in 2018 (52%), according to the Electoral Commission.
I don’t think the situation is that bad, but I have a feeling that democracy has been under attack for two years.comment after voting a retired Marija, who did not want to give her last name.
The government engaged in repeated attacks on the rule of law and democratic institutionsthe influential American NGO Freedom House said in its annual report published this week, citing attacks against justice and against the media.
Presumed to be a fan of former US President Donald Trump and ally of Hungarian ultra-conservative leader Viktor Orban, Janez Jansa removed the national news agency STA in several months of public funding, deemed too critical.
Faced with warnings from the European Commission, he was crushed overpayment of bureaucratsmultiplying the pass of arms in Brussels and doing Slovenia once model of a mobsteraccording to analyst Valdo Miheljak.
It was a vote against Jansa, against Slovenia being pursued by Hungary, against the establishment of an illiberal democracy, against a government that controls public television and the judiciary.reaction of political expert Miha Kovac, asked byAFP.
For the first time in 20 years, civil society and young voters took actionhe added, sketching a new trend which is to rely on.
After these two turbulent years, Richard Golob, former boss of a large power company specializing in solar energy, has vowed to reconnect with the normality.
However, Mr. warned. Kovac, the challenge for this party is enormous which did not exist three months ago and now has over 40 MEPs from 90 seats in Parliament. It has no infrastructure, no knowledge, no knowledge of the mysteries of parliamenthe warned.
He would then have an interest to rely on the experience of the Social Democrats, their potential future coalition partners, who got 6.8% of the vote, on the eve of the start of discussions with the aim of forming a government. .
Source: Radio-Canada