A recent survey by the AKO agency, conducted between October 8 and 17, reveals shifting trust levels among Slovakia’s political leaders. The poll, which sampled 1,000 respondents, indicates a slight increase in trust for opposition leaders, while those in the ruling coalition have seen declines, particularly Prime Minister Robert Fico of the Smer party.
The most trusted leader remains former Hlas party leader and President Peter Pellegrini, with 51 percent of people expressing trust in him, although his approval has dipped by 7 percentage points since June 2024. After Pellegrini, Fico’s former protégé, became president in June, he somewhat became invisible during the summer. For example, the country was experiencing protests against the culture minister at that time, but Pellegrini remained silent. Following him is Michal Šimečka, leader of Progressive Slovakia, the strongest opposition party, with a trust rating of 39.9 percent, reflecting a slight rise since the last survey. Šimečka and his family have faced a smear campaign launched by Fico in the past few months, resulting in his removal as one of the deputy speakers of parliament. Milan Majerský, leader of the Christian Democratic Movement (KDH), is third with 38.4 percent support.
Matúš Šutaj Eštok, leader of the coalition party Hlas and the interior minister, ranks fourth with 36.4 percent, just ahead of Branislav Gröhling of Freedom and Solidarity (SaS), who has a 36.3 percent approval rating. Šutaj Eštok has abolished the National Crime Agency (NAKA), which has investigated high-level corruption, including individuals linked to the previous Smer-led governments. The minister also refused to step down after May’s attempt on Fico’s life and is failing to tackle the shortage of police officers.
Fico falls to sixth place with only 32.3 percent trust, experiencing a significant drop of 13 percentage points since June.
After the shooting incident, Fico returned to work at the start of the summer, suspected of seeking revenge and harbouring anger over what had happened to him. Fico’s government has decided to increase taxes to reduce the deficit, and the prime minister refuses to sack the culture minister despite opposition from cultural workers. Moreover, his government changed criminal laws earlier this year, leading to charges being dropped against some well-known figures, including Deputy Speaker of Parliament Peter Žiga (Hlas), and reclassifying certain crimes as misdemeanours.
Former pro-Ukraine defence minister Jaroslav Naď, leader of Demokrati, a non-parliamentary party, and Peter Žiga, a deputy speaker of parliament who is temporarily holding the competences of the speaker, follow Fico closely, while the leaders of far-right Slovak National Party and populist Slovensko party round out the list with lower approval ratings.
