Coalitions and pseudo-coalitions

A new path to victory for PM Petr Fiala in the parliamentary elections might be opening up. Ex-PM Petr Nečas of Fiala's party, ODS, told TV Nova's noon-time debate show yesterday that the alliances created with several other parties each by SPD and Stačilo!/Enough! are in fact coalitions and are an election-law swindle. The Supreme Administrative Court should adjudicate this, he said. Ex-PM Vladimír Špidla of SocDem said on the same show that he fully agrees with Nečas. The issue is whether SPD and Stačilo! should need only 5% to get into Parliament, or instead 11%, which for both SPD and Stačilo! could be decisive. On Czech TV a few minutes later, debate host Václav Moravec referred to such alliances several times as "pseudo-coalitions," which ANO Vice Chair Radek Vondráček objected to, even though he said he doesn't prefer such alliances. After yesterday's debates, the likelihood seems to be mounting that the final outcome of this year's elections will be decided in the courts.