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Czech opposition sweeps Senate elections, ruling ANO shut out

Czech opposition sweeps Senate elections, ruling ANO shut out

Rule Changes

First time in Czech history that governing parties won no Senate seats; opposition takes 22 of 27

October 20th, 2026: Senate results published in the Collection of Laws

Overview

Updated Oct 24

Prime Minister Andrej Babiš's ANO won none of the 27 Senate seats decided on October 16 and 17, the first time no governing-party candidate has reached the upper house. Opposition parties took 22 seats: STAN 10, ODS seven, KDU-ČSL three and TOP 09 two.

Babiš called the result catastrophic and blamed the press, renewing his call to abolish the license fees that fund Czech public media. The State Election Commission published the results in the Collection of Laws on October 20, opening a 10-day window to challenge them at the Supreme Administrative Court. ODS candidate Radek Černý, who missed a runoff place in Žďársko by one vote, said he will ask the court to review the count to remove doubts.

Why it matters

Opposition-linked senators hold enough seats to block the government's constitutional changes and reject its Constitutional Court nominees.

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Key Indicators

22 of 27
Opposition Senate seats won
STAN 10, ODS 7, KDU-ČSL 3, TOP 09 2, with smaller groups and independents taking the remaining five.
14
ANO senators in the 81-seat chamber
The ANO club has 14 members, only 11 of them purely ANO; the party lost the one seat it was defending.
21.12%
Senate runoff turnout
Second-round turnout was 21.12%; first-round turnout was 43.31%.

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People Involved

Andrej Babiš
Andrej Babiš
Prime Minister of the Czech Republic; leader of ANO
Remains prime minister after ANO won no Senate seats; blamed the press and renewed calls to scrap public-media license fees
 Vít Rakušan
Vít Rakušan
Leader of STAN (Mayors and Independents)
Led STAN to 10 Senate seats, its best result in six years
 Karel Řehka
Karel Řehka
Former chief of the Czech General Staff; newly elected senator for STAN
Won the Plzeň-město Senate district
RV
Radek Vondráček
Deputy chairman of ANO
Proposed single-round Senate elections after ANO won no seats; STAN leaders called the proposal an embarrassing attempt to change the rules
ZP
Zuzana Ceralová Petrofová
Head of piano maker PETROF; newly elected ODS senator for Hradec Králové
Only woman elected to the Senate in the 2026 cycle
MV
Miloš Vystrčil
President of the Czech Senate; ODS senator
STAN said it accepts him continuing as Senate president after the October 2026 election

Organizations Involved

AN
ANO (YES movement)
Political party
Ruling party; Senate faction has 14 members after winning no seats; Babiš blamed the press and renewed calls to scrap public-media license fees

Founded by Babiš as an anti-establishment movement, ANO won the October 2025 parliamentary election and leads the governing coalition.
MI
STAN (Mayors and Independents)
Political party
Opposition; won 10 Senate seats and accepts Miloš Vystrčil (ODS) as Senate president

A pro-European centrist party rooted in Czech local government, STAN won 10 Senate seats, its best senatorial result in six years.
ODS (Civic Democratic Party)
ODS (Civic Democratic Party)
Political party
Opposition; won 7 Senate seats; its joint group with TOP 09 is poised to stay the largest, at 30-31 members

The center-right Civic Democrats won 7 Senate seats, gaining ground despite defending only 5.
Czech Senate
Czech Senate
Upper house of Parliament
Opposition-controlled after the October 2026 election; results were published in the Collection of Laws on October 20, with court challenges open until October 30.

The 81-seat upper house, with one-third elected every two years, can delay legislation, block constitutional changes, and confirm Constitutional Court nominees. After the October 2026 vote, opposition-linked groups could hold 61 of 81 seats.

Timeline

October 2025 October 2026

12 events Latest: October 20th, 2026 · 3 weeks ago Showing 8 of 12
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  1. Senate results published in the Collection of Laws

    Latest Procedure

    The State Election Commission published the full results, opening a 10-day window to challenge them at the Supreme Administrative Court that runs to October 30 for the 22 runoff winners. The deadline for the five senators elected in the first round was October 23.

  2. Election commission reviews Senate results

    Procedure

    The State Election Commission reviewed the vote count. Results were due in the Collection of Laws on Tuesday, after which a 10-day window to challenge them at the Supreme Administrative Court runs to October 30.

  3. ODS candidate plans court challenge to Žďársko result

    Legal

    Radek Černý, who missed a runoff place in Žďársko by one vote to Josef Klement of KDU-ČSL, said he will ask the Supreme Administrative Court to review the count. He said he wants to remove doubts about the vote, not overturn the result.

  4. Senate election returns record few women

    Election

    One of the 27 newly elected senators, Zuzana Ceralová Petrofová of ODS, is a woman - the fewest in any Czech Senate election.

  5. ANO deputy proposes single-round Senate vote

    Rule Change

    Radek Vondráček, ANO's deputy chairman, proposed scrapping the two-round Senate system, citing low runoff turnout. STAN's Karel Dvořák rejected the idea.

  6. STAN backs Vystrčil for Senate president

    Politics

    STAN said it accepts ODS senator Miloš Vystrčil staying as Senate president and called ANO's push for single-round Senate elections an embarrassing attempt to change the rules.

  7. Opposition sweeps Senate; ANO shut out

    Election

    STAN wins 10, ODS 7, KDU-ČSL 3, TOP 09 2; smaller groups and independents take the remaining five. ANO gets none; Babiš calls it 'catastrophic'.

  8. Runoff voting begins

    Election

    Voters in 22 Senate districts return to the polls Friday and Saturday.

  9. Municipal results: ANO loses ground

    Election

    ANO wins 6 of 13 regional capitals, down from 8; runoffs set in 22 districts.

  10. First round of Senate elections

    Election

    Voting opens for one-third of Senate seats; five candidates win outright, none from ANO.

  11. Babiš blames press, renews call to scrap license fees

    Politics

    The prime minister blamed the press for ANO's Senate defeat and repeated his call to abolish the license fees that fund Czech public media.

  12. ANO wins parliamentary election

    Election

    Babiš's ANO wins the Czech parliamentary election and forms a government with smaller parties.

Scenarios

1

Czech Senate blocks broadcaster financing overhaul

Possible Resolves by End of 2027

Discussed by: Czech political analysts; Babiš announced plans to overhaul public broadcaster financing after the loss

Babiš said ANO will press ahead, including with changes to public broadcaster financing. If the government brings a bill that the opposition-controlled Senate rejects, the Senate exercises its blocking power. The lower house could override on ordinary laws, but constitutional changes would need supermajority approval in both chambers.

2

ANO keeps national polling lead through mid-2027

Likely Resolves by Q2 2027

Discussed by: Reuters, which noted ANO continues to lead national polls despite the Senate loss

ANO entered the election cycle with a national polling lead. If the party still leads in a major published poll by mid-2027, the Senate defeat registers as a contained setback rather than a realignment. Babiš must also manage his coalition and plan for the next electoral test.

3

Czech coalition government stays intact through 2027

Likely Resolves by Oct 17, 2027

Discussed by: Reuters, which called the loss 'unlikely to destabilise' the coalition

The Senate defeat does not remove the government, because the lower house holds real power. Coalition partners could theoretically withdraw, but none has signaled intent. If all coalition parties remain in government until at least the end of 2027, the Senate loss becomes a contained political episode rather than a governing crisis.

4

Czech Senate moves to single-round voting

Unlikely Resolves by End of 2027

Discussed by: ANO deputy chairman Radek Vondráček; STAN deputy chairman Karel Dvořák

After ANO lost all 13 runoffs, Vondráček proposed switching Senate elections to a single round, saying runoff turnout is too low to be representative. Dvořák rejected the idea, arguing two rounds produce candidates with broader support. Changing the system would require a parliamentary majority ANO does not hold.

Historical Context

2 moments from history that rhyme with this story — and how they unfolded.

November 1994

1994 US midterm elections

Bill Clinton's Democrats lost control of both chambers of Congress in his first midterm, amid backlash over the failed healthcare reform push. In a sweeping defeat, Republicans took control of the House and Senate for the first time in 40 years.

Then

Clinton stayed in office and struck deals with the Republican Congress, including welfare reform in 1996.

Now

Midterm losses became a recurring pattern for US presidents, with similar swings in 2006, 2010, 2014, and 2018.

Why this matters now

A sitting government can absorb an early electoral defeat and keep governing while adjusting its legislative strategy. Babiš's coalition faces a similar dynamic with a hostile Senate.

November 1975

Australian constitutional crisis, 1975

Australia's opposition-controlled Senate refused to pass the Whitlam Labor government's budget, deadlocking Parliament. On November 11, Governor-General John Kerr dismissed Whitlam and appointed opposition leader Malcolm Fraser as caretaker prime minister.

Then

Fraser's coalition won the December 1975 election in a landslide.

Now

The crisis became a defining example of upper-house blocking power, though no Australian government has faced a similar showdown since.

Why this matters now

Shows the extreme end of what an opposition-controlled upper house can do. Czech rules, which let the lower house override Senate vetoes, make government collapse far less likely but legislative friction more likely.

Sources

(21)
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AP News News as Facts Radio Prague International ThePrint / Reuters Around Prague Česká televize — Události IJR News iROZHLAS EuroZprávy.cz Межа Expats.cz Domácí politika Internazionale / Reuters EUobserver ČeskéNoviny.cz iDNES.cz Metro.cz České zákony iROZHLAS iDNES.cz iDNES.cz