Good afternoon. Here is theFriday, November 10 edition of Today in Slovakia - the main news of the day in less than five minutes.
Pellegrini has a chance to be president
Hlas party leader Peter Pellegrini. (source: TASR)
Hlas party leader and Speaker of Parliament Peter Pellegrini has the best chance of winning next year's presidential election, according to a poll carried out by the Ipsos polling agency for the Denník N daily at the beginning of November.
He would make it to the second round together with former foreign affairs minister Ivan Korčok, with 40 percent of people voting for the former, and 26 for the latter, the survey found.
Still, Pellegrini has neither announced nor ruled out whether he will take part in the presidential race. If and when that happens, he and his party say they will let the public know. Pellegrini says that he has not taken "any such decision" yet, but adds that he will follow the situation and decide based on how things develop.
Meanwhile, Korčok recently announced he had collected all the signatures required to enter the presidential election as a civic candidate. The Hlas party said Korčok bears responsibility for the current state of the country. He has also been a frequent target of extremists, conspiracy theorists and populists.
Diplomat and ex-foreign minister Ján Kubiš is also currently collecting signatures to take part in the race. In addition, former Supreme Court president Štefan Harabin, who has become notorious for spreading pro-Kremlin propaganda and conspiracy theories online, has expressed some interest in running again. He came third in the first round of the 2019 presidential election, attracting more than 14 percent of the vote.
Current President Zuzana Čaputová's mandate ends in 2024, and she has announced that she will not run again.
The head of state is elected by citizens in a direct election every five years. Presidential candidates can be proposed either by at least 15 MPs, or by means of a petition signed by at least 15,000 citizens. The presidential election will not take place for at least another five months.
MORE STORIES FROM THE SLOVAK SPECTATOR WEBSITE
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BRATISLAVA: Passsengers may have to wait longer for some bus lines in the capital. Driver shortages are being blamed for the schedule changes.
GOOD NEWS: A Scottish newspaper reports on a nurse who served in northern Slovakia a century ago, and the aurora borealis was visible over parts of the country a few days ago.
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FEATURE STORY FOR FRIDAY
Nobel Prize winner discusses black holes, alien life
Nobel Prize winner Michel Mayor. (source: ESET Science Award/Linda Kisková Bohušová)
For centuries, humanity has known that other planets orbit the Sun. But it was only in 1995 that the very first discovery of a planet orbiting a different star was announced. Astrophysicists Michel Mayor and Didier Queloz both earned a Nobel Prize for their discovery.
Michel Mayor recently came to Bratislava to attend the ESET Science Award ceremony and The Slovak Spectator talked to him about his work, his research and the possibility of extra-terrestrial life.
EVENTS IN BRATISLAVA AND SLOVAKIA
Book, film and theatre festivals, plus games
As winter approaches, the mountains await. (source: TASR)
November is the month that makes you feel summer was too long ago and winter just cannot get here fast enough for you to go skiing. If you need to get that adrenaline fix, we've got you covered. You can also visit mines, and attend an amateur theatre showcase. Find out more in our weekend roundup.
If you're in Bratislava, head to a popular book fair, enjoy some wine, or if you're more of a sedentary type, bring your friends to a festival of modern board games. There's plenty to choose from in our Top 10 events for foreigners.
IN OTHER NEWS
The average nominal monthly salary in September rose in all ten monitored sectors, with retail recording the most rapid growth of 16.2 percent to reach €1,135, the Statistics Office reported. Decreases in employment were recorded in seven of the ten monitored sectors, with wholesale reporting the most significant year-on-year decline, amounting to 4.6 percent. (TASR)
According to President Zuzana Čaputová, some steps taken by the Interior Ministry raise concerns. She pointed out that several government representatives had declared that the new administration would not seek to take revenge on representatives or nominees of the previous government. However, yesterday a court ruled that the new interior minister, Matúš Šutaj Eštok (Hlas), had made a mistake in dismissing deputy police chief Branko Kišš, a whistle-blower, from his post. Read more about the minister's actions in our Last Week in Slovakia overview.
Health insurance companies were in the red at the end of September, with the biggest loss – of almost €108 million – reported by state health insurer Všeobecná Zdravotná Poisťovňa. (TASR)
The Bibliotéka book fair opened in Bratislava on Thursday. (source: TASR)
WEATHER FOR THE WEEKEND
Saturday will be mostly overcast, with rain and showers expected in many places, and snow above 1,100 metres. Sunday will start cloudy, but the cloud cover will diminish throughout the day. Daily temperatures will rise to 11°C on both days. (SHMÚ)
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