Slovak Authoritarian Ex-Premier Makes Political Comeback

(Bloomberg) -- Slovakia’s former authoritarian prime minister, whose rule slowed the nation’s path into NATO, announced he will lead a new party into February general elections, expanding the number of groups seeking to derail the country’s pro-western orientation.

As the newly elected chairman of the Slovak League, Vladimir Meciar said he has decided to make a political comeback as “the state of the nation forces” him to do so, the Sme newspaper’s online portal quoted him on Sunday as saying.

The country of 5.4 million is holding the ballot amid rising frustration over corruption ignited by last year’s murder of an investigative journalist. While the outrage has given rise to new liberal and center-right parties, it also fueled support for nationalist anti-establishment political groups. Those include the People’s Party, whose leaders praise Slovakia’s Fascist World War II regime.

Soon after the country split from Czechoslovakia and gained independence in 1993, it descended into a period of power grabs and cronyism under Meciar’s rule, which also put European Union membership at risk. Meciar lost power in 1998 and subsequent governments introduced a flat tax and sold state assets to Western companies. Those steps earned Slovakia the political kudos needed to join NATO and then the EU in 2004 along with its neighbors.

The largest ruling party Smer, which is intensifying its anti-immigrant agenda, still leads in polls even as its support fell to 20% from the 28% it won four years ago. It’s followed by two opposition start-up parties, including one founded by former President Andrej Kiska.

To contact the reporter on this story: Radoslav Tomek in Bratislava at rtomek@bloomberg.net

To contact the editors responsible for this story: Andrea Dudik at adudik@bloomberg.net, Michael Winfrey

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