COALITION WINS BIG IN EP ELECTIONS AMIDST LOW TURNOUT

UNCLAS BRATISLAVA 000587

SIPDIS


E.O. 12958: N/A
TAGS: PREL PGOV LO
SUBJECT: COALITION WINS BIG IN EP ELECTIONS AMIDST LOW TURNOUT



1. SUMMARY. SLOVAKIA'S RULING COALITION WON A SURPRISING EIGHT OF
FOURTEEN EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT SEATS. SLOVAKIA HAD THE LOWEST VOTER
TURNOUT OF LESS THAN SEVENTEEN PERCENT. WIDESPREAD SKEPTICISM
RESULTED IN VOTER APATHY AS MOST SLOVAKIS CONSIDERED THEIR
COUNTRY'S INFLUENCE IN THE EP AS MINIMAL. MANY VOTERS FELT THAT
THEY LACKED USEFUL INFORMATION ABOUT THE ELECTIONS AND THE EP.
END SUMMARY.


2. SLOVAKIA ELECTED FIVE PARTIES TO THE EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT (EP)
ON JUNE 13. THE RULING COALITION SURPRISINGLY WON EIGHT OF THE
FOURTEEN SEATS. SLOVAK DEMOCRATIC AND CHRISTIAN UNION (SDKU)
PLACED FIRST WITH 17.1 PERCENT OF THE VOTE (3 SEATS),CHRISTIAN
DEMOCRATIC MOVEMENT (KDH) WON 16.2 PERCENT (3 SEATS) AND THE
HUNGARIAN COALITION (SMK) 13.2 PERCENT (2 SEATS). THE JUNIOR
COALITION PARTY, ALLIANCE OF A NEW CITIZEN (ANO) DID NOT MAKE IT
OVER THE FIVE PERCENT THRESHOLD (4.7 PERCENT),DESPITE RUNNING A
FLASHY CAMPAIGN. THE OPPOSITION PARTY SMER, A LONG-TIME FAVORITE,
AND PEOPLE'S UNION-MOVEMENT FOR A DEMOCRATIC SLOVAKIA (LU-HZDS)
WON 17.04 AND 16.9 PERCENT RESPECTIVELY, GARNERING THREE SEATS
EACH. NEITHER THE COMMUNIST PARTY NOR THE NATIONALIST SLOVAK
NATIONAL PARTY WON SEATS WITH 4.65 AND 4.55 PERCENT OF THE VOTE.


3. ALL EIGHT MEPS ELECTED FROM THE COALITION PARTIES WILL JOIN
THE CENTER-RIGHT EUROPEAN PEOPLE PARTY-ED (EPP-ED) MILAN GALA,
ZITA PLESTINSKA, PETER STASTNY (SDKU); JAN HUDACKY, MIROSLAV
MIKOLASIK, ANNA ZABORSKA (KDH); EDIT BAUER, ARPAD DUKA-ZOLYOMI
(SMK). SMER'S MONIKA BENOVA, MILOS KOTEREC AND VLADIMIR MANKA
WILL JOIN THE EUROPEAN SOCIALIST PARTY (PES). PETER BACO, SERGEJ
KOZLIK AND IRENA BELOHORSKA OF LU-HZDS WILL BE AMONG "OTHERS" AS
THEIR PARTY DOES NOT HAVE ANY PARTNER IN THE INTERNATIONAL PARTY
ORGANIZATIONS.


4. ELECTION TURNOUT WAS EXTREMELY LOW AT 16.96 PERCENT, THE
LOWEST IN EUROPE. VOTER APATHY, LACK OF COMPREHENSIBLE
INFORMATION ABOUT THE EP FROM THE MEDIA AND THE POLITICAL
PARTIES, AND A WIDESPREAD FEELING THAT FOURTEEN SLOVAKS CANNOT
MAKE A DIFFERENCE IN A BODY OF 732 MEPS CONTRIBUTED TO THE LOW
TURNOUT.

COMMENT
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5. ONCE AGAIN, POLLING PROVED TO BE AN UNRELIABLE PREDICTOR IN
THESE ELECTIONS. PARTIES WITH EXISTING AND STABLE REGIONAL
STRUCTURES AND A LOYAL VOTER CADRE, SUCH AS KDH, LU-HZDS, AND SMK
BENEFITED FROM THE LOW TURNOUT. SMER'S SUPPORTERS, HOWEVER, ARE
LESS PREDICTABLE WITH LESS OF A VOTER TRACK RECORD. PRE-ELECTION
POLLING SUGGESTED THAT SMER WOULD GARNER ABOUT 20-25 PERCENT OF
THE VOTES. PM DZURINDA'S SDKU IS THE REAL WINNER. AFTER FAILING
TO TURN-OUT IN PRESIDENTIAL ELECTIONS AND POLLING IN THE SINGLE
DIGITS FOR THE PAST YEAR, SDKU VOTERS PULLED OUT A VICTORY DUE TO
LOW VOTER PARTICIPATION.
WEISER

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