Wealthy ex-communist Babiš loses to ex-NATO general Pavel in Czech presidential elections, there will be second round

Radio Prague International reported this. 

It is noted that in the Czech Republic, according to the results of the first round of presidential elections, ex-NATO General Petr Pavel beat former ex-communist Prime Minister Andrej Babiš.

The gap between the candidates was less than one percent. According to the calculation of 99.6% of votes, Pavel leads with 35.34%, and Babiš - 35.04%. At the same time, ex-NATO general Pavel won a victory among the voters of Prague. His support in the capital exceeds the 50% barrier required for election in the first round.

Which of the candidates will become the president will be determined in the second round in two weeks.

For reference :

Andrej Babiš is a 68-year-old entrepreneur from Slovakia. He became a billionaire as the head of the Agrofert holding. In 2011, he entered politics, founding the ANO party. He held the post of Minister of Finance, and later Prime Minister. Before the "velvet revolution" of 1989, he was a member of the Communist Party of the Czechoslovak SSR. He denies the accusation that he was a state security agent and does not recognize the veracity of the documents confirming this, published by the Institute of National Memory of Slovakia.

Petr Pavel - 61-year-old general, former chief of the General Staff of the Army of the Czech Republic. He headed the NATO Military Committee for three years. He is running under the slogan, which promises to "return order and peace to the Czech Republic." He admits that he was once a member of the Communist Party of the Czechoslovak SSR and denies the accusation that before the "velvet revolution" of 1989 he worked in military counter-intelligence.

• On January 14, the Czech Republic voted in the first round of presidential elections. It is known that 8 candidates applied for the seat of the head of state: 7 men and one woman. Three - Petr Pavlo, Danuše Nerudová and Karel Diviš collected 50,000 signatures each. After the restoration of state independence of the Czech Republic and until 2013, the head of the Czech state was elected in the parliament.  The first and so far the only popularly elected president of the modern Czech Republic is Miloš Zeman.