Elections are taking place on October 2nd-3rd for one third of the seats in the Czech Senate, including the #60 constituency covering the north of Brno. Brno Daily takes a look at the runners and riders to see who is the frame to become Brno’s next senator… Photo credit: Freepik / For illustrative purposes.
Brno, Aug 30 (BD) – On October 2nd-3rd, Czech voters will go to the polls in regional elections, as well as in one third of Senate constituencies. In Brno, constituency #60 will be up for election, covering the northern part of the city, including Žabovřesky, Jundrov, Komín, Královo Pole, Řečkovice and Mokrá Hora, Medlánky, Ivanovice, Jehnice, Ořešín, Útěchov and Brno-north. The incumbent, Zdeněk Papoušek (KDU-CSL) is not standing again, so the constituency is in line for a new representative. The candidate list is now finalised, and electoral numbers have been allocated. So who is running?
- Anna Šabatová – Šabatová is the former Ombudswoman of the Czech Republic, holding the office from 2014 until February of this year. She was a signatory of Charter 77, the human rights declaration issued as a challenge to the Communist authorities in 1977, and later became the movement’s spokeswoman. She is running with the support of the Green Party, the Senator 21 group of independent senators, and the Idealists party.
- Bohuslav Chalupa – Formerly a member of the ANO movement, Chalupa was an MP from 2013 to 2017. He was elected as a District Councillor in Brno-Komin in 2018, again for ANO, but left the party in 2019. He is now standing as a non-partisan candidate with the support of PRO Health and Sport, a minor party focused on promoting sport and healthy lifestyles.
- Oldřich Duchoň – A 57-year-old car mechanic, Duchoň stood unsuccessfully for the Communist Party in Senate elections in Brno-mesto in 2018, and parliamentary elections in 2017. As a Senate candidate he was also supported by the far-right SPD. This time he is standing for Národ Sobě [“the Nation for Itself”], a tiny party advocating unconditional income and the protection of historical Czech traditions.
- Tomáš Anderle – The principal of the Gemini Secondary School in Brno-Lesna, Anderle is standing for the far-right Freedom and Direct Democracy (SPD).
- Pavel Trčala – Brno native Trčala is an economic consultant, and holds the record for the youngest Czech to climb Mount Everest. He is standing for the Moravian Regional Movement, a party that calls for Moravian autonomous rule. He previously stood unsuccessfully for the party in the 2018 Brno-mesto Senate election, finishing in 7th place.
- Jiří Kadeřávek – The 50-year-old software developer is standing for the Czech Pirate Party, which he founded in 2009, becoming its first Vice-President. He is also a candidate in the simultaneous South Moravian Regional Assembly elections.
- Karel Rais – Rais is currently a member of the Chamber of Deputies representing ANO. He previously stood as a candidate for the centre-right TOP 09 in Senate elections in 2012. He served as the Rector of Brno University of Technology from 2006 to 2014.
- Lukáš Berta – Nominated by the “Marek Hilser for the Senate” movement of sitting Senator and 2018 presidential candidate Marek Hilser, Berta is a freelance IT professional who is standing as a political candidate for the first time.
- Tomáš Tomáš – Tomáš is an orthopedic doctor at St. Anne’s University Hospital in Brno, where he has worked since 1993. He is standing for the Christian Democratic Party (KDU-CSL), and has been a district councillor in Brno-north since 2014.
- Richard Novák – Brno native Novák is a lawyer, standing for the national-conservative Tricolor movement founded by Vaclav Klaus jr. in 2019, and also supported by the far-right activist group Slušní lidé.
- Roman Kraus – Kraus was the director of Brno University Hospital in Bohunice from 2007 to 2019, and is standing as a Senate candidate with the support of liberal-conservative parties ODS and TOP 09.