INDEPENDENT candidate Andrej Kiska, who has been considered the most likely candidate to make it to the second round of the presidential election to face Prime Minister Robert Fico, the official candidate of Smer, has increased his voter support and narrowed the gap between his support and that of Fico.
The recent poll by the Median polling agency for the public-service broadcaster RTVS showed Fico’s support at 35.8 percent, while Kiska received the support of 32.6 of those polled.
Other candidates received much smaller support in the poll: Kiska is followed by other two independent candidates, Radoslav Prochazka who received 9.5 percent, and Milan Kňažko with 7.5 percent. The official candidate of the People’s Platform, Pavol Hrušovský, fell to 3.4 percent in the Median poll, followed by Party of Hungarian Community (SMK) candidate Gyula Bárdos and independent Helena Mezenská, who both garnered 3.3. percent. Ján Čarnogurský polled at 2.2 percent.
The poll was carried out over the phone during the third week of February on a sample of 1,033 respondents.
Fico did not comment on the results of the poll.
Kiska noted that the polls might still change.
“The February [polls] show that a big part of the voters wish [to have] an independent non-partisan president,” he said, as quoted by the Sme daily. “It seems I can represent this interest of people.”
Procházka said that in the end the voters will vote for a competent candidate, even though from the poll results it seems that most voters who do not support Smer want the president to perform the tasks of the first lady.
Kňažko said that we should wait for further polls and noted that preferences will change after the debates.
“The results will look very different then,” Kňažko told Sme.
Head of the Median agency Jindřich Bardon acknowledged Procházka and Kňažko might still have their say in the election, since the election is still three weeks away and things can change.
Source: Sme
Compiled by Michaela Terenzani from press reports
The Slovak Spectator cannot vouch for the accuracy of the information
presented in its Flash News postings.
