# Slovakia 2023 election and Fico return

### Fico returned through coalition bargaining after a polarising campaign

[Robert Fico](/people/robert-fico)'s Smer-SD finished first in Slovakia's 30 September 2023 parliamentary election after a campaign focused on sovereignty, economic discontent and opposition to military support for Ukraine. The party did not win an outright majority; the Slovak parliamentary election system requires parties to negotiate a majority across a 150-seat National Council. Official parliamentary figures allotted 42 seats to Smer, 32 to [Progressive Slovakia](/organizations/progressive-slovakia) and 27 to [Hlas-SD](/organizations/hlas-sd). The result made Peter Pellegrini's Hlas party pivotal in coalition formation. The outcome intensified [political polarization](/drivers/political-polarization) because a campaign partly organised around foreign-policy identity and distrust of the political establishment produced a governing coalition with sharply contested priorities.

Fico had resigned as prime minister in March 2018 amid protests following the murder of investigative journalist [Ján Kuciak](/people/jan-kuciak) and his fiancée. His return in 2023 was therefore not a simple continuation of uninterrupted rule. The country's leadership had changed repeatedly between those dates, and the 2023 election followed a period of governmental instability. On 30 September opinion polls and exit surveys showed uncertainty; on 1 October reported returns confirmed Smer's lead. Coalition talks then centred on Smer, Hlas and the Slovak National Party. The presidential appointment on 25 October 2023 made Fico prime minister for a fourth term, providing the executive office through party agreement rather than direct presidential election.

During the 2023 campaign Fico repeatedly attacked mainstream media, liberal NGOs and Slovakia's military assistance to Ukraine. Analysts and journalists criticised misinformation circulated during the contest, especially online material exploiting distrust in institutions and the war. Concern about the [disinformation ecosystem](/drivers/disinfo-rt-ecosystem) is connected to identifiable campaign narratives, but an accusation that every Smer voter acted on falsehood would have no evidentiary basis. Many voters also cited inflation, public services and coalition instability. Slovakia's official statistics distinguish votes awarded to Smer, Progressive Slovakia, Hlas and smaller parties; those totals cannot directly reveal every voter's motivation.

On 25 October the incoming administration said it intended to pursue its policy programme within Slovakia's national and European institutional settings. Fico's statements about stopping state military aid to Ukraine were especially scrutinised at European meetings. There were also concerns about proposed changes to prosecutors and anti-corruption bodies, because criminal enforcement in Slovakia had been a central political issue since the 2018 killings. The outcome is therefore relevant to rule of law, not merely alignment with Russia or the European Union. Political opponents warned about concentrating executive influence over oversight institutions; coalition supporters argued their platform had received democratic authorisation through the vote.

The immediate democratic counterweight was the survival of a substantial parliamentary opposition, including 32 Progressive Slovakia MPs and other parties outside government. Campaign freedoms, party competition, coalition accountability and independent legal scrutiny remained concrete tests after Fico's return. The September result demonstrated functioning electoral alternation in government, while the conduct of the new executive created a separate test of [political competition](/drivers/political-competition): whether elected leaders would protect the rules needed for the opposition to compete fairly in future elections.

## Dated facts

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## Methodology

https://factrail.ai/methodology

Canonical: https://factrail.ai/drivers/slovakia-2023-election-and-fico-return