The Civic Democrats won the European elections with a big lead and immediately started to focus their attention on this autumn’s early elections for the lower house. They want to get a million more votes.
The communists and socialists combined beat the ODS in all regions except Prague and central Bohemia. Are you going to warn against their connection in this autumn’s election campaign?
When I last said something like that, all the commentators were saying how silly I was and that I should be replaced by summer, so do not expect any answer from me. All voters know that there is such a risk, and I do not need to stress it.
Half a million votes went to parties that didn’t win seats in the European elections. How does the ODS want to attract these voters?
If the current two green parties continue with their fratricidal fight, they have no chance to get into the lower house, and all parties will have to offer their own solutions to voters. The ODS will offer nuclear energy as well as a sort of conservative approach to the environment. In this respect, we want to come up with something for those voters who would not currently vote for us, as well.
What would you regard as a success in the autumn?
We have to have at least a million votes more than we have now. But winning the elections will not suffice. A success will be if it is possible to form a non-leftist coalition.
Are you also counting on the KDU-ČSL for a non-leftist coalition?
It will be up to the KDU-ČSL what it does. We would not oppose cooperating.
Is there space for new parties?
There is, and it’s a question of who fills it. Who replaces the Freedom Union, ODA and possibly the Green Party? Of course, we’d want to fill it if possible.
