Nearly 6,000 polling stations across Slovakia opened on Saturday morning, marking the start of the sixth direct presidential elections in the country's history. Polling stations will be open from 7 a.m. to 10 p.m. and some 4.3 million eligible voters in Slovakia will cast their ballots to elect a head of state for a five-year term. Slovak citizens residing in Slovakia can vote by showing their identity card, while those living abroad can vote by showing their passport or a document proving their residence abroad. Unlike in parliamentary elections, voting in the presidential contest cannot be done by post, but only at polling stations within the country.
Under the relevant rules, a candidate can win in today's first round of the election if he or she receives more than half of eligible voters' support.
However, this has never happened before in Slovakia's presidential elections, and polls now suggest this is unlikely to be the first time. In the event of no new head of state at the close of round one, the two best-performing candidates will go on to a runoff second round, where a majority of the votes cast by the electorate is enough to secure a victory. This year a potential round two will be held on April 6.
Voter turnout in Slovakia for the presidential elections is usually not high, ranging between 40 and 50 percent in the last four elections. The last time, in 2019, turnout was at a record low, with less than 42 percent of eligible voters going to the polls.
Eleven hopefuls had originally registered to stand, but with the withdrawal of two, voters have a choice of nine candidates. The term of sitting President Zuzana Caputova, who is not in the running this year, expires on June 15. The polls suggest that Peter Pellegrini, Voice - Social Democracy (Hlas-SD) party chair and president of the Parliament, and former Foreign Minister Ivan Korcok are likely to be in the runoff. Also vying for the presidential seat is Hungarian candidate, Krisztian Forro, head of the Hungarian ethnic minority party, the Hungarian Alliance (MSZ/MA).
