| Country: | Czech Republic |
| Type: | parliamentary |
| Previous Election: | 2002 Czech parliamentary election |
| Previous Year: | 2002 |
| Next Election: | 2010 Czech parliamentary election |
| Next Year: | 2010 |
| Seats For Election: | All 200 seats in the Chamber of Deputies 101 seats needed for a majority |
| Election Date: | 2–3 June 2006 |
| Turnout: | 64.42% (6.47pp) |
| Image1: | Mirek Topolanek.jpg |
| Leader1: | Mirek Topolánek |
| Party1: | Civic Democratic Party (Czech Republic) |
| Last Election1: | 24.48%, 58 seats |
| Seats1: | 81 |
| Seat Change1: | 23 |
| Popular Vote1: | 1,892,475 |
| Percentage1: | 35.38% |
| Leader2: | Jiří Paroubek |
| Party2: | Czech Social Democratic Party |
| Last Election2: | 30.21%, 70 seats |
| Seats2: | 74 |
| Seat Change2: | 4 |
| Popular Vote2: | 1,728,827 |
| Percentage2: | 32.32% |
| Image3: | Vojtěch Filip 2013 (cropped).JPG |
| Leader3: | Vojtěch Filip |
| Party3: | Communist Party of Bohemia and Moravia |
| Last Election3: | 18.51%, 41 seats |
| Seats3: | 26 |
| Seat Change3: | 15 |
| Popular Vote3: | 685,328 |
| Percentage3: | 12.81% |
| Image4: | Ing.Miroslav Kalousek.jpg |
| Leader4: | Miroslav Kalousek |
| Party4: | KDU-ČSL |
| Last Election4: | 14.28%, 31 seats |
| Seats4: | 13 |
| Seat Change4: | 18 |
| Popular Vote4: | 386,706 |
| Percentage4: | 7.23% |
| Image5: | Bursík.jpg |
| Leader5: | Martin Bursík |
| Party5: | Green Party (Czech Republic) |
| Last Election5: | 2.37%, 0 seats |
| Seats5: | 6 |
| Seat Change5: | 6 |
| Popular Vote5: | 336,487 |
| Percentage5: | 6.29% |
| Prime Minister | |
| Posttitle: | Prime Minister after election |
| Before Election: | Jiří Paroubek |
| Before Party: | Czech Social Democratic Party |
| After Election: | Mirek Topolánek |
| After Party: | Civic Democratic Party (Czech Republic) |
Parliamentary elections were held in the Czech Republic on 2 and 3 June 2006 to elect the members of the Chamber of Deputies.[1]
A major scandal broke out a few days before the elections when a classified report by Jan Kubice, the head of the anti-organised crime unit, was leaked to the media, accusing the ruling Social Democratic Party (ČSSD) of corruption and interference in police investigations. The Civic Democratic Party (ODS) and the Social Democratic Party, the two largest parties, obtained their highest percentage of votes ever. Turnout increased from the previous parliamentary elections in 2002.
The elections produced an evenly balanced result. One potential coalition – the Civic Democratic Party, Christian Democrats (KDU-ČSL) and Greens – won exactly half of the 200 seats, while the Social Democratic Party and the Communists (KSČM) held the other half, meaning that either coalition would struggle to pass legislation.
Following the elections, 230 days passed without a new government being formed. Eventually, a coalition government formed of the Civic Democratic Party, KDU-ČSL and the Greens passed a confidence vote on 19 January 2007, when two Social Democrat deputies abstained.
Several weeks before the elections, police officer Jan Kubice, head of the squad for investigating organised crime, suggested that senior figures from the police and the government were trying to cover up their cooperation with organised crime. He was summoned before a parliament commission a few days before the election where he presented a document; the contents of the document were leaked immediately.
The document suggested that former Prime Minister Stanislav Gross had connections with the criminal underground and hinted that Prime Minister Jiří Paroubek was indirectly involved in a murder, dealt with the mafia and was a pedophile. It also contained information about minor officials, some of whom had already been imprisoned for bribery.[2] [3]
Paroubek and the others denied these claims and accused the opposition Civic Democratic Party of trying to manufacture a scandal to help them in the elections. After the elections, Paroubek said that the allegations cost his party, the Social Democratic Party, victory and that democracy was in as much danger as in 1948, when the Communists seized power. He raised the possibility of challenging the election result, though this did not happen.[4]
| Party | US-DEU | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Money Spent | 120,000,000 Kč[5] | 80,000,000 KČ | 43,000,000 Kč | 22,000,000 Kč | 13,000,000 Kč[6] | 11,000,000 Kč |
The Chamber of Deputies consists of 200 members elected for a four-year term. Seats were allocated by proportional representation between those lists that gained over 5% of the national total of valid votes cast.
Party lists were presented in 14 regions, with votes cast for a list, although voters were allowed up to two preference votes for candidates on that list.
The Czech Republic has a parliamentary system of government, with ministers being responsible to the Chamber of Deputies. The Chamber is the most powerful organ of the state with power to override vetoes by the President and the Senate.
See main article: Opinion polling for the 2006 Czech parliamentary election.
| Date | Polling Firm | ODS | ČSSD | KSČM | KDU-ČSL | SZ | US-DEU | NEZDEM | SNK-ED | NEZ | Others | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| < | --colour taken from the official ODS website.--> | < | --colour taken from the official ČSSD logo.--> | < | --colour taken from the official KSČM website.--> | < | --colour taken from the official KDU-ČSL logo.--> | < | --colour taken from the official Zelení website.--> | ||||
| 2-3 Jun 2006 | Election | 35.3 | 32.3 | 12.8 | 7.2 | 6.3 | 0.3 | 0.7 | 2.1 | 0.6 | 2.4 | ||
| 25–26 May 2006 | SC&C | 30.8 | 24.2 | 12.1 | 5.8 | 8.6 | |||||||
| 22 May 2006 | Median | 19.0 | 20.0 | 12.2 | 6.0 | 8.9 | |||||||
| 18–24 May 2006 | Factum Invenio | 27.8 | 28.5 | 17.3 | 9.0 | 8.6 | 1.1 | 1.5 | 3.0 | ||||
| 19 May 2006 | CVVM | 32.0 | 28.0 | 15.5 | 5.5 | 10.5 | 0.5 | 1.0 | 2.5 | 2.0 | 2.5 | ||
| 12 May 2006 | Factum Invenio | 29.0 | 22.8 | 16.7 | 11.3 | 9.8 | |||||||
| 9. May 2006 | STEM | 26.7 | 25.2 | 13.0 | 5.4 | 7.1 | 0.3 | 0.2 | 0.9 | 0.4 | |||
| 19 April 2006 | STEM | 26.8 | 21.3 | 13.3 | 4.9 | 10.6 | 0.5 | 1.1 | 0.5 | ||||
| 18 April 2006 | Factum Invenio | 29.5 | 23.6 | 18.1 | 12.3 | 10.0 | |||||||
| 13 April 2006 | SC&C | 24.0 | 15.0 | 11.0 | 4.0 | 10.0 | 35.0 | ||||||
| 3 April 2006 | Factum Invenio | 29.3 | 25.3 | 17.6 | 9.9 | 10.5 | 2.2 | 0.6 | 0.8 | 1.7 | 2.1 | ||
| 24 March 2006 | CVVM | 25.5 | 21.0 | 12.5 | 6.5 | 10.0 | 24.5 | ||||||
| 17 March 2006 | STEM | 26.7 | 21.8 | 12.4 | 6.1 | 9.4 | 0.3 | 0.1 | 1.0 | 0.8 | 21.6 | ||
| 16 February 2006 | STEM | 28.6 | 24.5 | 15.3 | 6.4 | 5.6 | 0.3 | 0.2 | 0.5 | 1.0 | 15.6 | ||
| 2 February 2006 | CVVM | 36.0 | 35.0 | 14.5 | 8.0 | 3.0 | 1.0 | 1.0 | 1.5 | ||||
| 18 January 2006 | STEM | 28.6 | 27.2 | 13.2 | 6.7 | 3.4 | 0.5 | 0.3 | 1.0 | 0.8 | 18.3 |
The election produced a deadlock, leaving all the coalitions which were considered likely before the election (ODS-KDU-ČSL-Greens; ČSSD-KSČM; ČSSD-KDU-ČSL-Greens) with less than the 101 votes required to pass legislation or to pass a confidence vote for the new cabinet in the Chamber of Deputies (100, 100 and 93 votes, respectively). Remaining possibilities included a grand coalition of the Civic Democratic Party and the Social Democratic Party, which would command a large majority, totalling 155 seats against 45; a minority cabinet of either of the 100-vote coalitions, which would have negotiate with the opposition to get the majority required for a confidence vote or to pass any legislation; or fresh elections.
On 26 June, the Civic Democratic Party, KDU-ČSL and the Greens announced that they had agreed on a coalition.