The trust in party leaders and the president in November 2023. (source: TV Markíza)
Two and a half months after the parliamentary elections, more people trust Hlas party leader and Speaker Peter Pellegrini than before. At a time when he is considering running for president, 46 percent trust him, according to a Focus poll published by TV Markíza's Na Telo political programme.
At the same time, 52 percent expressed distrust in Pellegrini.
The survey focused on people's trust in the leaders of major political parties and President Zuzana Čaputová, who came second in the poll.
The Focus agency collected data from November 15 to 22, on a sample of 1,015 respondents. The poll was conducted before the government presented its changes to the Criminal Code, including the abolishing of the Special Prosecutor's Office and the reduction of penalties for corruption and other economic crimes, and before recent protests opposing the changes.
Potential presidential candidates
Čaputová, currently trusted by 42 percent of respondents, was followed by Prime Minister Robert Fico (Smer) with a 37-percent trust level.
While Fico maintained the same level of trust and distrust as in the last Focus measurement in August, Pellegrini and Čaputová improved by 6 percentage points.
The poll suggests that Pellegrini has a shot at winning the presidential election in 2024. The Speaker will announce if he will run in January.
"I will finish meetings in every region by the end of Christmas. I want to leave Christmas for such a personal decision, and I will announce it in January," said Pellegrini on Saturday.
The major ruling party Smer will support Pellegrini if he decides to run.
The presidential election will take place in the spring.
Andrej Danko, who chairs another coalition party, Slovak National Party (SNS), came fourth in the Focus poll. SNS has already announced that it will field its own candidate in the first round of the presidential race.
Shifts in the trust in political leaders. (source: TV Markíza)
Environment Minister Tomáš Taraba (SNS nom.) opined last weekend that Danko might run in the presidential race.
"Given that SNS is historically the oldest party, it should have its own candidate," Taraba said, adding that Danko could announce a decision on the candidacy by the end of the year.
On the other hand, PM Fico said that he would not run for president.
Opposition leader Michal Šimečka revealed on Sunday that his party, Progressive Slovakia (PS), will support ex-foreign minister Ivan Korčok in the presidential race.
"Considering a bulldozer with which the ruling coalition (Smer-Hlas-SNS) is destroying the rule of law and justice in Slovakia, it is crucial for Slovakia, for our democracy, to have balance here. They simply cannot have everything," Šimečka told TV Markíza.
According to him, Pellegrini cannot be the president because he supports the criticised changes to the Criminal Code. At the same time, he highlighted Korčok's experience as a former diplomat and foreign minister.
Matovič is at the bottom, Šimečka a climber
Šimečka has seen trust climb from 19 to 27 percent in a quarter of the year, according to the Focus poll.
However, mistrust in opposition political party leaders is generally higher than in coalition political party leaders. For instance, former PM Igor Matovič (OĽaNO/Slovensko) remains the least trusted leader, with 87 percent of respondents not trusting him.
