Vondrak has been ANO deputy chairman since February 2022. Photo credit: Ivo Vondrak, via Facebook.
Prague, Feb 9 (CTK) – Ivo Vondrak, Governor of the Moravian-Silesian Region, has decided to resign as deputy chair of ANO, he told journalists before yesterday’s meeting of the ANO leadership.
Before the presidential election, Vondrak publicly supported Petr Pavel instead of ANO leader and former prime minister Andrej Babis, and expressed reservations about the development of his party.
Asked whether his decision would depend on yesterday’s leadership debate, Vondrak said he would submit his resignation either way. He noted that he had already mentioned that he was considering leaving his post in the ANO leadership.
Vondrak has been ANO deputy chairman since February 2022. He joined the party in 2017 and has been a member of the Chamber of Deputies for ANO since the same year.
Vondrak’s public support for Pavel during the election campaign received criticism from senior ANO figures, including deputy chairs Karel Havlicek and Alena Schillerova.
Ostrava Mayor Tomas Macura, who was a member of the senior ANO leadership from February 2019 to February 2022, also endorsed Pavel before the election. Babis ran for president as a candidate of ANO, while Pavel was an independent civic candidate.
Vondrak previously suggested that a faction could be created in ANO. He said the party had deviated from its original plan to bring people into politics and do politics for everybody. He said then that he might leave ANO in the future if he did not gain support for such a move.
Havlicek said in response that Vondrak had proposed to create a faction several months ago, but his proposal did not attract support.
