Prague, July 16 (CTK) – Czech PM and ANO chairman Andrej Babis and ANO’s Prague branch agreed on Monday on replacing Patrik Nacher with entrepreneur Petr Stuchlik as the movement’s leader in the autumn local elections in Prague, followed by Nacher in the second position, Nacher has told journalists.
The number three candidate will be finance minister Ivan Pilny, he said.
The ANO executive committee will take a vote on the amended list of candidates online.
Nacher was previously chosen as the election leader in Prague, i.e. the candidate for mayor, in an intra-party referendum. Nevertheless, he said he respects the fact that the ANO statutes enable his replacement.
“I believe that if the Stuchlik, Nacher, Pilny threesome [leads ANO in the polls in Prague], it is quite a strong threesome,” Nacher said, adding that he believes in ANO’s chance to successfully defend its election victory from 2014, which catapulted its election leader Adriana Krnacova to the post of mayor.
Krnacova does not seek re-election in the upcoming polls due on October 5-6.
Originally, the ANO executive committee was to meet to discuss the list of candidates on Monday, but the meeting did not take place. According to CTK’s information, too many of its members excused themselves because they are holidaying outside Prague.
As a result, members of the committee are to approve the new proposal per rollam, which is at a distance.
They have three days to do so. Afterwards, the new list of candidates will be officially released, Nacher said.
Stuchlik, the founder of the successful company Fincentrum, which deals with financial consulting, said last week that he will gladly accept a chance to contribute to the development of Prague with his managerial and life experience. He said Prague needs an experienced manager at its head.
ANO won the October 2017 general election and has been comfortably leading party popularity polls since.
