Civic Democratic Party (Czech Republic)

The Civic Democratic Party (Czech: Občanská demokratická strana, ODS) is a conservative and soft Eurosceptic political party in the Czech Republic. The party generally sits centre-right to right-wing on the political spectrum, and holds 34 seats in the Chamber of Deputies, and is the second strongest party by number of seats following the 2021 election. It is the only political party in the Czech Republic that has maintained an uninterrupted representation in the Chamber of Deputies.

Civic Democratic Party
Občanská demokratická strana
AbbreviationODS
LeaderPetr Fiala
Deputy LeadersZbyněk Stanjura
Alexandr Vondra
Martin Baxa
Martin Kupka
Chamber of Deputies LeaderMarek Benda
Senate LeaderZdeněk Nytra
MEP LeaderVeronika Vrecionová
FounderVáclav Klaus
Founded21 April 1991 (1991-04-21)
Preceded byCivic Forum
HeadquartersTruhlářská 9, Prague
Think tankCEVRO[1]
Right Riverbank[2]
Youth wingYoung Conservatives
Young Civic Democrats
Membership (2021)12,500[3]
Ideology
Political positionCentre-right to right-wing
National affiliationSPOLU
European affiliationEuropean Conservatives and Reformists Party
International affiliationInternational Democrat Union
European Parliament groupEuropean Conservatives and Reformists
Colours  Blue
Chamber of Deputies
34 / 200
Senate
23 / 81
European Parliament
4 / 21
Regional councils
99 / 675
Governors of the regions
3 / 13
Local councils
2,294 / 61,780
Prague City Assembly
9 / 65
Party flag
Flag of the Civic Democratic Party
Website
www.ods.cz

Founded in 1991 as the pro–free market wing of the Civic Forum by Václav Klaus and modeled on the British Conservative Party,[4] the ODS won the 1992 legislative election, and has remained in government for most of the Czech Republic's independence. In every legislative election (except for that of 2013) it emerged as one of the two strongest parties. Václav Klaus served as the first prime minister of the Czech Republic after the partition of Czechoslovakia, from 1993 to 1997. Mirek Topolánek, who succeeded him as leader of the party in December 2002, served as prime minister from 2006 to 2009. In the 2010 election, the party lost 28 seats, finishing second, but as the largest party right of the centre, it formed a centre-right government with Petr Nečas as prime minister. In the 2013 legislative election, the party was marginalized by only securing 16 seats in the Chamber of Deputies, relegating the party to the opposition from July 2013 to December 2021. In the 2017 legislative election, it has partly recovered and secured 25 seats in the Chamber of Deputies, making it the second strongest party in chamber. The party is currently being led by Prime Minister Petr Fiala, who has been leader since the 2014 party convention.

The ODS is a member of the International Democratic Union, and co-founded together with the British Conservatives the eurosceptic European Conservatives and Reformists Party (ECR Party) and the European Conservatives and Reformists (ECR group) in the European Parliament.

History

Formation

The party was founded in 1991 as one of two successors to the Civic Forum, which was a big tent movement that consisted of two major wings. The strongest wing was the Interparliamentary Club of the Democratic Right which was transformed into the ODS when Civic Forum split.[5] ODS represented followers of Václav Klaus and was pro–free market, as opposed to the centrist Civic Movement. An agreement was reached to split the party in half at the Civic Forum Assembly on 23 February 1991. This was followed on 21 April by a formal declaration of a new party, and Klaus was elected its first President.[6] The party agreed to continue in a coalition government with the Civic Movement, but this collapsed in July 1991.

The Civic Democrats, who represented demands for a tighter Czechoslovak federation, began to organize in Slovakia.[7] Ahead of the 1992 election, the ODS ruled out an electoral alliance with the Liberal Democrats, but agreed to an alliance with Václav Benda's Christian Democratic Party (KDS) to boost its appeal to conservatives.[7] The ODS won the election, winning 66 seats (and the KDS another ten), and formed a centre-right coalition with the Civic Democratic Alliance (ODA) and the KDU-ČSL, with Klaus as prime minister.[8]

Dominant party (1992–1998)

It was the dominant party in two coalition governments in the Czech Republic from 1992 to 1997, a majority administration (1992–96) and a short-lived minority government (1996–97).

On 2 June 1995, the ODS and KDS signed a merger agreement, which would come into effect on 18 March 1996, ahead of that year's election. However, at the election, whilst the ODS improved to 68 seats, its allies fell, leading to the government receiving only 99 seats: two short of a majority. Klaus continued with a minority government, relying on its acceptance by the Social Democratic Party (ČSSD).

In December 1997, allegations of the party receiving illegal donations and maintaining a secret slush fund caused the ODA and KDU-ČSL to withdraw from the coalition, and the government collapsed. Josef Tošovský was appointed caretaker, pending new elections in June 1998. Despite the scandal, Klaus was re-elected party chairman. In January 1998, some legislators opposed to Klaus, led by Jan Ruml and Ivan Pilip, left the party in the so-called 'Sarajevo Assassination' and formed the Freedom Union (US).[9]

Opposition agreement

At the elections, the ODS fell even further, to 63 seats, while the US won 19. Due to the split, the Freedom Union refused to support the ODS, preventing them from getting a majority; the US's executive also refused to support the ČSSD. As a result, on 9 July 1998, the ODS signed the Opposition Agreement, which pledged the party to provide confidence and maintain a ČSSD government under Miloš Zeman.[10] This agreement was then superseded by the more explicit 'Patent of Tolerance' in January 2000.[11]

Opposition (2002–2006)

In the 2002 legislative election, the party went from being the largest seat holder to being the second largest party in the Chamber of Deputies with 58 of 200 seats, and for the first time in its history assumed the role of a true opposition party. Mirek Topolánek took over the party leadership. The former Czech president, Václav Klaus, has been the party's honorary president for his first term in the office. In the European Parliament elections in June 2004 and in Senate and regional assembly elections in November 2004, it received over 30% of the votes.

Return to government (2006–2013)
Leader of the Civic Democrats from 2002 until 2010, Mirek Topolánek led the party to an election victory in 2006 and became the party's first prime minister since 1997.

In the 2006 legislative election the ODS was the largest seat holder in the Chamber of Deputies with 81 seats. ODS originally aimed to make a deal with Czech Social Democratic Party but talks with the Social democratic leader Jiří Paroubek were unsuccessful. Mirek Topolánek then introduced his first minority cabinet that consisted of Civic Democrats and independents. It was designated on 4 September 2006 but lost a vote of confidence on 3 October 2006.

ODS then formed a government in coalition with the Populars (KDU-ČSL) and the Green Party (SZ). Projects of the cabinet included reform of public finances. Topolánek also discussed possible emplacement of United States Missile defense in the Czech Republic which resulted in public resistance.

The party suffered heavy losses in regional and Senate elections in 2008, losing all 12 regional governorships it had previously held. However, a year later, ODS won the European Parliament election, keeping all 9 seats and gaining more votes than in previous elections.

ODS-led government during Czech Presidency of the Council of the European Union 2009. Czech presidency had to deal with problems such as Gas crisis in Ukraine, conflict in Gaza or economic crisis. There were also controversies like Entropa but some aspects such as resolution of gas crisis were positively evaluated.[12]

The Cabinet had lost a no confidence vote on 24 March 2009. The country was then governed by a newly formed caretaker Cabinet, which was nominated by ODS, ČSSD and SZ. Early elections were set for 9–10 October 2009 but were postponed to May 2010 due to unexpected developments in the Constitutional Court and House of Deputies

Civic Democratic Party won the second place after Czech Social Democratic Party and formed a centre-right Government with TOP 09 and Public Affairs. Public Affairs split from the government on 22 April 2012 but were replaced by LIDEM. The Civic Democratic Party was widely defeated in the regional election that same year, finishing third overall and winning only in the Plzeň region. The party also lost 2010 and 2012 Senate elections.

ODS chairman Announces Government Resignation

ODS nominated Přemysl Sobotka for president of the Czech Republic during the 2013 presidential election. Sobotka received only 2.46% of votes and didn't qualify for second round. ODS has held 2012 presidential primaries which Přemysl Sobotka has won. Sobotka's poor showing in the 2013 general election was seen as caused by the government's unpopularity and lack of support from the party.[13] The party's leadership supported Karel Schwarzenberg of TOP 09 in the second round of the presidential election.[14]

Opposition (2013–2017)
See also: 2013 Czech political corruption scandal
Current party leader Petr Fiala

After resignation and fall of Cabinet of Prime Minister Petr Nečas ODS proposed Miroslava Němcová to the position of the prime minister to President Miloš Zeman saying that she will be able to form a coalition and succeed a vote of confidence in the Chamber of Deputies. However, President Zeman refused to appoint her and instead appointed Jiří Rusnok's Cabinet. After that, opposition called for a dissolution of Chamber of Deputies and early election (such vote was only recently made possible by a constitutional amendment). The motion of dissolution passed with 147 out of 200 votes (120 required), all parties except ODS, whose deputies left the chamber, voted for dissolution, including their former coalition partners Public Affairs and TOP 09. President Zeman then called on early elections on 25–26 October 2013. ODS suffered heavy losses. It gained only 16 seats and finished 5th. The party also lost elections of the European parliament and of Senate and municipal in 2014.

The 24th Congress of the Civic Democratic Party elected on 18–19 January 2014 a new leadership of ODS. The former rector of Masaryk University and minister Petr Fiala was elected as chairman. Member of the European Parliament Jan Zahradil was elected as first-vice-chairman. In his book Citizens, Democrats and Party Members (Czech: Občané, demokraté a straníci), Fiala said the party needs to be attractive to new, young people and ODS shall have experts on economics, health care, education, etc.

In the Chamber of Deputies ODS formed an informal coalition relationship with TOP 09 and both have been opposing laws such as Control report of Value-added tax. On 26 May 2015, ODS, TOP 09 and Dawn of Direct Democracy called an unsuccessful vote of no confidence of the Cabinet of Bohuslav Sobotka.

As of December 2015 opinion polls showed ODS with 8.6% nationwide.[15] Some polling agencies and political commentators are of the opinion that ODS was on the path to become main centre-right party again.[16][17][18]

On 16 January 2016, Fiala was re-elected as Leader of the ODS. ODS participated in 2016 regional and Senate election. It received about 10% of votes and its candidate's secured seats in all regions. 6 candidates nominated by ODS qualified for the second round for Senate. 4 of them were eventually elected Fiala then said that ODS returned to the position of the major right wing party.[19][20]

Opposition and formal cooperation with TOP 09 and KDU-ČSL (2017-2021)

ODS agreed to participate in the 2017 legislative election together with Freeholder party. Parties will present themselves during the campaign as ODS with the support of Freeholders. This agreement means that Freeholders will take 40 places on ODS candidacy list.[21] In February 2017, ODS started a campaign called "We create program." which was series of tours to Czech regions with party leaders discussing priorities with supporters and potential voters for an upcoming election.[22] On 19 April 2017, ODS introduced its tax program. The Civic Democrats want to lower taxes which they say would increase the income of Czech citizens. ODS also wants to decrease spending in social benefits and subsidies. Chief Whip Zbyněk Stanjura said that many people take advantage of social benefits even though they don't deserve it. These plans resembled those that ODS had in the 2006 legislative election manifesto.[23][24] Tours concluded with Conference "Strong program for Strong Czechia" held on 22 April where ODS presented their election manifesto and candidates.[25][26]

Departed chairman of the Senate (in years 2018–2020) Jaroslav Kubera of the ODS

Following the 2017 Czech government crisis, ODS grew in polls, approaching the Czech Social Democratic Party.[27] According to a poll by TNS Kantar, ODS would become the second strongest party, surpassing ČSSD and KSČM.[28] ODS introduced its campaign for 2017 election on 29 May 2017. It is inspired by the British Conservative Party's campaign for 2017 general election.[29] In the 2017 election, ODS sought to get more than 10%.[30] According to poll by STEM/Mark in September. ODS would get 7.5% of votes.[31]

ODS received 11% in 2017 legislative election and became the second largest political party in the Czech Republic.[32] The party then won 2018 Senate election confirming its position as the main right wing party.[33]

Civic Democratic Party, KDU-ČSL and TOP 09 formed bloc of conservative opposition parties in late 2020. The alliance was known as the "Three Coalition", before the parties launched their slogan and program on 9 December 2020, announcing that they would run under the name Spolu ("together") in the 2021 Czech legislative election.[34] The conservative bloc announced that Petr Fiala would be their candidate for the post of prime minister.[35]

The Bloc ran in 2021 Czech legislative election with Fiala as a leader. Opinion polls suggested that ANO 2011 would win the election but in an electoral upset ODS-led Spolu won highest number of votes and opposition parties won majority of seats in the Chamber of Deputies.[36] Opposition parties signed memorandum agreeing to nominate ODS leader Fiala for the position of the new prime minister.[37]

Return to power (2021–present)

ODS formed a coalition government with STAN, KDU-ČSL, TOP 09 and Piráti after the election. Petr Fiala became the new prime minister. ODS holds 6 seats in Fiala's Cabinet.

Ideology

The ODS is described as conservative,[38][39][40][41][42] liberal-conservative,[43][44][45] and conservative-liberal,[46][47][48] supports economic liberalism,[49] and is Eurosceptic.[50][51] There are also multiple ideological factions in the party, including the national conservative faction,[52][53][54][55] the national liberal faction,[56] the social liberal faction[57] the neoconservative faction[58] and the Christian socially conservative faction (former Christian Democratic Party).[59]

Pre-election billboard with the inscription "Low taxes – ODS solution" in 2010

The party's ideas are very close to those of the British Conservative Party, Swedish Moderate Party, and other liberal-conservative parties in Europe. The party's program states "low taxes, public finances and future without debts, support for families with children, addressable social system, reducing bureaucracy, better conditions for business, a safe state with the transatlantic links. No tricks and populism."

Many prominent politicians in the party say they are opposed to "political correctness" and call for tougher measures to combat radical Islam which they liken to Nazism.[60][61][62][63]

Pre-election meeting in Brno in 2018

Although the party was in power when the Treaty of Lisbon was ratified in the Czech Republic, ODS supports maintaining Czech sovereignty and integrity against the European Union, calls for a fundamental reform of the EU and strongly opposes any federalization of Europe in the form of the EU becoming a quasi-state entity.[64] Following the EU referendum in Britain which resulted in the United Kingdom voting to leave, ODS leader Petr Fiala said the Czech Republic "should reconsider its priorities and strategy in the European Union" and if the Treaties were to be re-opened, negotiate new conditions for the country such as an opt-out from asylum rules as well as from the obligation to adopt the euro.[65] The party is a member of the national-conservative European Conservatives and Reformists group.

The ODS is against immigration. The party supports compulsory measures for immigrants to speak the Czech language, learn about Czech history and adapt to local customs and cultures.[39] ODS is also opposed to compulsory EU migrant quotas by arguing that the Czech Republic should have sovereignty over its own border control and that forcing nations to take in migrants without sufficient vetting or orderly processing and integration poses a threat to national security, social cohesion and native European culture. ODS believes that all individual nations should have the right to determine their own immigration policies.[63]

ODS also supports the right of law abiding citizens to own and carry firearms,[66] being the main reason Czech gun laws are much more liberal than in nearly all other European countries. This makes them different from parties they are based on, as most of them, especially British Conservatives, reject the idea that anyone has a right to own and carry firearms and other weapons, making the ODS much more similar to American Republicans in this matter, although they still support gun control measures (such as background checks, licenses and registration). ODS, especially its defense expert Jana Černochová, was one of the main supporters of embedding the right to keep and bear arms for the purposes of national security into the Czech constitution, although it was Social Democrat Milan Chovanec who originally proposed it. The amendment failed in the Senate. In 2021 a same bill passed.[67]

Symbols

Name

Václav Klaus stated that the party's name represents the fact that ODS is based on the idea of civic freedoms. It also shows that ODS is a Civic Party, which differentiates it from other parties that existed prior to 1991. The adjective Democratic represents that ODS should protect parliamentary democracy.[68]

Besides its official name, ODS also received some informal names from media. Party members are sometimes called "the Blues" or the "Blue Birds" and ODS is sometimes called the Blue Party due to the party's association with the color blue.[69][70][71][72]

The first logo was introduced on 4 June 1991, created by Aleš Krejča. It was chosen from over 250 entries to a public competition.[73][74]

A new logo was introduced in 1992, including the silhouette of a bird in blue. The logo was created by Petr Šejdl. In 1994 when the bird's tail was shortened and in 1998 the font was changed as a result of the "Sarajevo betrayal" of autumn 1997, in which ODS colleagues used allegations of bribery to precipitate the resignation of Václav Klaus' government while he was on a trip to Sarajevo.[75][73] The party used this version until 2015 with modifications for individual election campaigns.[76]

The ODS introduced a new party logo in a congress in Prague in 2015. The design of the bird was updated and flies upwards rather than to the left. The logo was designed by Libor Jelínek.[77]

  • Party logo, 1991–1992
    Party logo, 1991–1992
  • Party symbol, 1994–2015
    Party symbol, 1994–2015
  • Current logo, since 2015
    Current logo, since 2015

Organisation

Party structure

The highest body of the ODS is Congress which meets every year and elects leadership every two years. The party is led by the Executive Council and Republic Assembly in time between meetings of Congress. The executive body meets every Month and the party is led by Panel between meetings of the Executive Council. Panel consists of Party's Leader, Deputy Leaders and Chief Whips of the Parliamentary ODS.[78]

ODS is structured similarly to the subdivisions of the Czech Republic. The structure consists of local associations. Group of local associations forms area. Areas are organised as parts of Region.[79][80]

Membership
YearMembersRef.YearMembersRef.YearMembersRef.
199118,500 200118,280[81] 201127,648
199223,000 200220,412 201224,507
1993 200321,641[82] 201321,578
1994 200423,138 201417,944[83]
199521,803[84] 2005 201514,771
1996 2006 201614,123
1997 2007 201714,005[85]
199816,000 2008 201814,095
199919,300 200934,000[86] 201913,563[87]
200017,000[88] 201031,011

ODS had 18,500 Members in 1991. The number of members grew with the party's influence and soon rose to over 23,000. It decreased during political crisis in 1998 to 16,000. The party stopped the decrease after preliminary election and membership grew once again. It peaked in 2010 when it reached 31,011. The member base started to decline rapidly after 2010. It had only 17,994 members prior the 2013 election.[89] ODS had 14,771 members in May 2015 and the member base was stabilised according to leaders of the party.[90]

Blue Team kiosk during an election campaign in Brno

The party runs a membership organisation known as Supporters of ODS. It is a looser form of involvement with the party. It is meant for people who doesn't want to be members of ODS but sympathize with its program.[91] It replaced the organisation known as Blue Team[92]

Faces of ODS is a project of party's members who share their life's story. It was described as honour for all members of the party who didn't abandon it in hard times.[93]

Young Conservatives
Main article: Young Conservatives (Czech Republic)

Young Conservatives (Czech: Mladí konzervativci, MK) is a youth wing of ODS. Young people from the age of 15 to 35 can apply for a membership in the MK. The founding congress of MK was held on 8 December 1991 as a result of previous preparations through Charter of Young Conservatives by a group of students at the University of Technology in Brno and Law Students' Association "Všehrd" from Faculty of Law at the Charles University. The Young Conservatives organize a wide range of events from meetings with local or national politicians to elections campaigns and international events.

CEVRO Liberal Conservative Academy
Main article: CEVRO Liberal Conservative Academy

CEVRO Liberal Conservative Academy (Czech: CEVRO Liberálně konzervativní akademie) is a think-tank affiliated with ODS. It was established in 1999. Its goal is political education which tries to spread liberal-conservative thinking. In 2005, CEVRO established its own private university known as CEVRO Institute. CEVRO has four newspapers – CEVRO Revue, The Week in European Politics, The Week in Czech Politics and Forthnightly.[94]

International organisations

ODS joined the European Democrat Union (EDU) in 1992 as one of the first parties in the former Eastern Bloc. Václav Klaus even became a Vice President of EDU. ODS remained in the EDU until it became part of the European People's Party (EPP) in 2002. ODS refused to join EPP due to its ideological differences and instead became a member of European Democrats.[95]

ODS joined International Democrat Union (IDU) in 2001.[96] Chairmen of Civic Democratic Party served as Vice-presidents of IDU.

In July 2006, the Civic Democratic Party signed an agreement with the British Conservative Party to leave the European People's Party–European Democrats (EPP-ED) Group in the European Parliament and form the Movement for European Reform in 2009. On 22 June 2009, it was announced that ODS would join the newly formed European Conservatives and Reformists (ECR) parliamentary group, an anti-federalist and Eurosceptic group, which currently its third largest bloc in the European Parliament. ODS then became one of founding members of the European Conservatives and Reformists Party (ECR Party), a conservative and Eurosceptic European political party, defending broader conservative and economically liberal principles. Other members of ECR Party include Conservative Party, Law and Justice or Freedom and Solidarity.

Current
PositionNamePhotoSince
ChairmanPetr Fiala
18 January 2014
1st vice-chairmanZbyněk Stanjura
19 January 2020
Vice-chairmanMartin Kupka
18 January 2014
Vice-chairmanAlexandr Vondra
18 January 2014
Vice-chairmanZdeněk Zajíček
9 April 2022
Vice-chairmanMartin Baxa
13 January 2018
Chairman of Deputies CaucusZbyněk Stanjura
6 November 2013
Chairman of Senate CaucusZdeněk Nytra
19 October 2020
Chairman of EP CaucusVeronika Vrecionová
5 June 2023

Leaders
No.NamePhotoSinceUntil
1 Václav Klaus
21 April 199115 December 2002
2 Mirek Topolánek
15 December 200213 April 2010
3 Petr Nečas
20 June 201017 July 2013
4 Petr Fiala
18 January 2014Incumbent

Note: Only properly elected leaders are included.

Election results

Chamber of Deputies
Year Leader Vote Vote % Seats +/- Place Notes Position
1992 Václav Klaus 1,924,483 29.7
76 / 200

66 / 200
 Increase 33 1st Increase Participated in Coalition with KDS. Coalition
1996 1,794,560 29.6
68 / 200
 Increase 2 1st Steady Minority government supported by oppositional ČSSD. Coalition
1998 1,656,011 27.7
63 / 200
 Decrease 5 2nd Decrease Opposition agreement with ČSSD. Opposition
with other arrangements
2002 1,166,975 24.5
58 / 200
 Decrease 5 2nd Steady Main opposition party. Opposition
2006 Mirek Topolánek 1,892,475 35.3
81 / 200
 Increase 23 1st Increase 2006 minority government, 2007–2009 coalition with KDU-ČSL and Greens. Minority (2006–2007)
Coalition (2007–2009)
2010 Petr Nečas 1,057,792 20.2
53 / 200
 Decrease 28 2nd Decrease Coalition government with TOP 09 and VV/LIDEM. Coalition
2013 Miroslava Němcová 384,174 7.7
16 / 200
 Decrease 37 5th Decrease Opposition Party. Opposition
2017 Petr Fiala 572,962 11.3
25 / 200
 Increase 9 2nd Increase Joint list with Freeholder Party of the Czech Republic Opposition
2021 1,493,701 27.8
71 / 200

34 / 200
 Increase 9 1st Increase Part of Spolu alliance. Coalition

Senate
Election Candidates First round Second round Seats Total Seats Notes
Votes % Runners-up Place* Votes % Place*
1996 81 1,006,036 36.5
76 / 81
 1st 1,134,044 49.2 1st
32 / 81
32 / 81
 The whole Senate was elected. Only one third of Senate was elected in all subsequent elections.
1998 27 266,377 27.7
22 / 27
 1st 210,156 39.1 1st
9 / 27
26 / 81
1999 1 3,844 12.2
0 / 1
 2nd 
0 / 1
25 / 81
 By-election in Prague 1 district.
2000 27 203,039 23.6
18 / 27
 1st 166,133 29.5 1st
8 / 27
22 / 81
2002 27 165,794 24.9
19 / 27
 1st 284,537 34.6 1st
9 / 27
26 / 81
2003 2 10,555 29.8
2 / 2
 1st 11,136 47.7 2nd
1 / 2
26 / 81
 By-elections in Strakonice and Brno-City Districts.
2004 2 11,824 33.4
2 / 2
 1st 13,974 53.5 1st
1 / 2
27 / 81
 By-elections in Prague 4 and Znojmo districts.
2004 27 241,120 33.3
25 / 27
 1st 257,861 53.8 1st
19 / 27
37 / 81
2006 27 354,273 33.3
26 / 27
 1st 289,568 50.4 1st
14 / 27
41 / 81
2007 2 5,569 18.7
1 / 2
 3rd 4,338 21.5 3rd
0 / 2
41 / 81
 By-elections in Přerov and Chomutov districts.
2008 27 252,827 24.1
20 / 27
 2nd 266,731 32.4 2nd
3 / 27
35 / 81
2010 27 266,311 23.1
19 / 27
 2nd 225,708 33.1 2nd
8 / 27
25 / 81
2011 1 7,422 27.2
1 / 1
 2nd 7,227 34.8 2nd
0 / 1
25 / 81
 By-election in Kladno district.
2012 27 151,950 17.28
10 / 27
 3rd 117,990 22.95 2nd
6 / 27
15 / 81
2014 1 3,792 16.5
1 / 1
 2nd 5,925 36.8 2nd
0 / 1
15 / 81
 By-election in Zlín district
2014 1 1,564 11.8
0 / 1
 5th  
0 / 1
15 / 81
 By-election in Prague-10 district
2014 25 118,268 11.52
7 / 27
 3rd 53,149 11.21 4th
2 / 27
14 / 81
 One of its candidates was elected in coalition with Koruna Česká (party).
2016 24 107,785 12.23
6 / 27
 3rd 48,609 11.46 4th
4 / 27
10 / 81
 Including Zdeněk Nytra who ran as independent.
2018 1 7,615 33.51
1 / 1
 1st 30,331 67.11 1st
1 / 1
10 / 81
 By-election in Trutnov district. Jan Sobotka was a STAN candidate supported by ODS.
2018 1 2,786 16.36
0 / 1
 3rd  
0 / 1
10 / 81
 By-election in Zlín district. Miroslav Adámek was a STAN candidate supported by ODS.
2018 19 163,630 15.02
11 / 27
 1st 116,736 27.82 1st
10 / 27
16 / 81
 Including Jaroslav Zeman and Jan Tecl.
2019 1 4,651 24.25
1 / 1
 1st 4,811 40.49 2nd
0 / 1
16 / 81
 By-election in Prague 9 district.
2020 1 4,663 29.73
1 / 1
 1st 5,302 57.17 1st
1 / 1
16 / 81
 By-election in Teplice district.
2020 17 140,293 14.07
10 / 27
 1st 82,377 18.23 2nd
5 / 27
18 / 81
2022 17 151,908 13.7
9 / 27
 2nd 111,071 23.2 2nd
8 / 27
24 / 81

* Places are by number of votes gained.

Presidential

Indirect Elections

Election Candidate First round result Second round result Third round result
Votes %Votes Result Votes %Votes Result Votes %Votes Result
1993 Václav Havel (independent; ODS government supported)
109 / 172
 63.4 Won —
1998 Václav Havel (independent; part of ODS supported)
130 / 184
 70.7 Runner-up
146 / 281
 52.3 Won —
2003 Václav Klaus
123 / 270
 45.6 Runner-up
109 / 198
 55.1 Runner-up
113 / 202
 55.9 1st place
121 / 275
 44.0 Runner-up
118 / 192
 61.5 Runner-up
127 / 192
 66.1 1st place
147 / 275
 53.5 Runner-up
139 / 268
 51.9 Runner-up
142 / 266
 53.4 Won
2008 Václav Klaus
139 / 277
 50.2 Runner-up
142 / 277
 51.3 Runner-up
141 / 252
 56.0 1st place
141 / 277
 50.9 Runner-up
141 / 267
 52.8 Runner-up
141 / 252
 56.0 Won

Direct Election

Election Candidate First round result Second round result
Votes %Votes Result Votes %Votes Result
2013 Přemysl Sobotka 126,846 2.46 8th place supported Karel Schwarzenberg
2018 Mirek Topolánek 221,689 4.30 6th place supported Jiří Drahoš
2023[lower-alpha 1] Petr Pavel 1,975,056 35.40 Runner-up 3,358,926 58.33 Won
Danuše Nerudová 777,080 13.93 3rd place supported Petr Pavel
Pavel Fischer 376,705 6.75 4th place supported Petr Pavel
  1. The SPOLU coalition supported 3 independent candidates for this election.

European Parliament

Local election
Year Vote Vote % Place Seats
1994 3,787,264 29.56 1st
7,289 / 62,160
1998 1,895,984 24.16 1st
5,697 / 62,920
2002 2,036,021 25.21 1st
5,715 / 62,494
2006 3,935,395 36.2 1st
7,033 / 62,426
2010 1,694,396 18.78 2nd
5,112 / 62,178
2014 893,065 9.01 3rd
2,398 / 62,300
2018 2,465,930 11.1 2nd
2,845 / 61,892
2022 12,977,999 12.1 2nd
2,294 / 61,780

Regional election
Year Vote Vote % Seats +/- Place Places in regions Governors Coalitions
2000 559,301 23.8
185 / 675
 1st 7x 1st, 3x 2nd, 3x 3rd
8 / 13
8 / 13
2004 769,848 Increase 36.4 Increase
291 / 675
 Increase 1st 12x 1st, 1x 2nd
12 / 13
12 / 13
2008 687,005 Decrease 23.6 Decrease
180 / 675
 Decrease 2nd 12x 2nd, 1x 3rd
0 / 13
4 / 13
2012 324,081 Decrease 12.3 Decrease
102 / 675
 Decrease 3rd 1x 1st, 3x 3rd, 7x 4th, 2x 5th
0 / 13
0 / 13
2016 239,836 Decrease 9.5 Decrease
76 / 675
 Decrease 4th 3x 3rd, 4x 4th, 4x 5th, 2x 6th, 1x 7th
0 / 13
10 / 13
2020[97] 411,825 14.87Increase
99 / 675
 Increase 2nd 1x 1st, 5x 2nd, 2x 3rd, 4x 4th, 1x 5th
4 / 13
13 / 13

2020 Czech regional election results
Region Coalition partner # of
overall votes		 % of
overall vote		 Seats[98] Governance[99]
# ±[100] Position
Central Bohemian — 82,695 19.77
16 / 65
 Increase 6 Increase 2nd STAN–ODS–Pirates–TOP 09+Greens-Voice
South Bohemian — 34,857 17.52
12 / 55
 Increase 4 Increase 2nd ODS–KDU-ČSL+TOP 09–ČSSD–JIH12
Plzeň TOP 09 36,890 21.23
9 / 45
 Increase 1 Increase 2nd ODS+TOP 09–STAN–Pirates
Karlovy Vary KDU-ČSL 5,870 7.35
2 / 45
 Decrease 2 Increase 4th STAN+TOP 09-Pirates-ODS+KDU ČSL-Local movements
Ústí nad Labem — 24,739 12.37
8 / 55
 Increase 1 Increase 2nd ANO–ODS–TOP 09+JsmePRO
Liberec — 11,932 8.59
5 / 45
 Increase 1 Increase 4th SLK–Pirates–ODS
Hradec Králové STAN and East Bohemians 41,668 23.53
6 / 45
 Increase 1 Increase 1st ODS+STAN+VČ–KDU-ČSL–Pirates–TOP 09+HDK
Pardubice TOP 09 23,434 14.10
6 / 45
 Increase 1 Increase 3rd ČSSD–ODS+TOP 09–KDU-ČSL–STAN
Vysočina Mayors for Citizens 21,038 13.19
5 / 45
 Steady Increase 3rd ODS+STO–Pirates–KDU-ČSL–ČSSD–STAN
South Moravian Freedomites and SOM 46,342 12.77
9 / 65
 Increase 3 Increase 4th KDU-ČSL–Pirates–ODS–STAN
Olomouc — 19,421 10.36
7 / 55
 Increase 2 Increase 4th STAN+Pirates–KDU-ČSL+TOP 09–ODS
Zlín — 19,302 10.04
5 / 45
 Increase 2 Increase 5th ANO–Pirates–ODS–ČSSD
Moravian-Silesian TOP 09 43,637 13.637
9 / 65
 Increase 3 Increase 2nd ANO–ODS+TOP 09–KDU-ČSL–ČSSD

Prague municipal elections
Year Leader Vote Vote % Seats +/− Place Position
1994 Jan Koukal 41.2
23 / 55
 1st Coalition
1998 Jan Koukal 36.8
21 / 55
 Decrease2 1st Coalition
2002 Pavel Bém 35.5
30 / 70
 Increase8 1st Coalition
2006 Pavel Bém 54.4
42 / 70
 Increase12 1st Coalition
2010 Bohuslav Svoboda 21.1
20 / 65
 Decrease22 2nd Coalition
2014 Bohuslav Svoboda 11.0
8 / 65
 Decrease12 4th Opposition
2018 Bohuslav Svoboda 17.9
14 / 65
 Increase6 1st Opposition

Federal Assembly of Czechoslovakia

House of the People

Year Leader Vote Vote % Seats Place Notes Position
1992 Václav Klaus 2,200,937 23.0
48 / 150
 1st Participated in Coalition with KDS. Majority Government

House of Nations

Year Leader Vote Vote % Seats Place Notes Position
1992 Václav Klaus 2,168,421 22.6
37 / 150
 1st Participated in Coalition with KDS. Majority Government

Elected representatives

Civic Democratic Party has 23 members of the Chamber of Deputies.

Civic Democratic Party has 16 Senators of the Senate of the Czech Republic.

Civic Democratic Party has 4 MEPs.

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Bibliography
  • Hanley, Sean (2008). The New Right in the New Europe: Czech Transformation and Right-Wing Politics, 1989–2006. London: Routledge. ISBN 978-0-415-34135-6.
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