The results of the first round of the region (VÚC) elections on Saturday mirrored the public's sympathies vis-a-vis political parties at the national level, political analyst Juraj Marušiak told the TASR on Sunday, November 15. According to him, the four re-elected governors in Nitra, Žilina, Trnava and Košice regions have confirmed their strong position.
Marušiak noted that the third-place finish of incumbent Banská Bystrica governor Milan Murgaš, who had lost the support of the main governing party Smer, is a testament to the fact that certain potential tensions exist within the governing coalition.
According to the analyst, the most pointed warning from the elections is the 13,000 votes and fourth-place finish for former Slovenská Pospolitosť (Slovak Togetherness) right-wing organisation leader Marián Kotleba in Banská Bystrica region – a sign of radicalisation of a certain part of the electorate.
He also pointed out that the higher turnout (22.9 percent, which is about 5 percentage points higher than in the first round 2005) is a sign that people have become more aware of the importance of the VÚCs. TASR
Compiled by Zuzana Vilikovská from press reports
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