Babiš has repeatedly said he would like to govern alone — but unless ANO secures more than 40 percent of the seats this scenario remains unlikely.
“The best thing for our country in this situation would be a majority single-party government … That would make it possible to quickly deliver on our program without any coalition compromises,” Babiš said.
Both the current governing coalition, Spolu, and ANO have ruled out cooperating with each other, leaving only more fringe parties as potential partners.
Babiš ruled out a coalition with the far-right SPD last year but, as the elections approach, he remains ambiguous. ANO and SPD already share power on a regional level, in four parts of the country. On Tuesday, Babiš said he would not govern with the communists, though his first Cabinet did rely on their support.
Wait a second. Isn’t Babiš in legal jeopardy?
Babiš has been entangled in legal woes over his agriculture empire Agrofert for several years now, and he is currently awaiting a verdict from the Prague District Court over whether he defrauded the EU out of €2 million so that Agrofert could receive subsidies intended for medium-sized businesses.
The case hinges on whether the “Stork’s Nest” farm was carved out of Agrofert to make it look like a smaller, independent business. Unless new evidence is found, the court is obliged to take its lead from Prague’s High Court — which in June overturned an earlier ruling that had originally acquitted Babiš of wrongdoing.