It must have come as a shock to many Slovaks when their president announced at the palace in Bratislava on Tuesday afternoon that she would not run for a second term. Zuzana Čaputová is considered the country’s most popular and trusted politician, and has regularly topped the polls since taking office in the summer of 2019. An election victory in the spring of 2024 was considered certain. For her supporters, she is an anchor in the country’s chaotic politics, which have been characterized by hostility and aggression for years.
The reasons she is now putting forward say a lot about the state of the country. She also makes this decision “with consideration for my family”. Čaputová, who turns 50 this Wednesday, has two young adult daughters. The President received death threats against herself and her family. She had spoken about it before and filed complaints. In addition, there have been attacks and defamation from the pro-Russian and right-wing extremist camp of the opposition for years, especially from ex-Prime Minister Robert Fico. He would like to win the parliamentary elections again on September 30 with his Smer-SD party.
The lawyer uncovered an environmental scandal in her hometown
“After honest consideration, I now know that I no longer have the strength for another mandate,” explained Čaputová. “I’m sorry to disappoint those who expected a second candidacy.” Čaputová wants to complete her term of office, which lasts another year. But the potential five years that follow would certainly not be any easier than the past four, she said.
Čaputová had not held any political office before taking office in 2019. The lawyer was known to a few people because she had uncovered an environmental scandal in her hometown of Pezinok and had successfully taken action against those responsible. She was honored for it in the United States. In response to the double murder of journalist Ján Kuciak and his girlfriend in February 2018, Čaputová became involved in the newly founded Progresivne Slovensko party. In March 2019, she then won the presidential election with a very clear result against her challenger, the European politician Maroš Šefčovič, who was nominated by the Smer-SD.
In the four years of her tenure so far, she has experienced four governments, appointed three prime ministers, and the fifth government will follow in the autumn. Slovakia is currently led by a government of experts, which, however, does not enjoy the confidence of parliament.
From the Fico camp, the president is insulted as an “American agent”.
For Slovakian political scientist Milan Nič, the president’s decision not to run again is alarming: “It shows that hate and smear campaigns like Robert Fico’s are working,” he says on the phone. This is a bad sign for the upcoming parliamentary elections in Slovakia. Politicians in other countries, such as Poland, where there will also be elections in the fall, could feel spurred on, says Nič, who works for the German Council on Foreign Relations.
Čaputová is also highly respected as president abroad. In the neighboring Czech Republic, she had already won a lot of sympathy during her election campaign. Some of their former advisers helped Petr Pavel win the presidential election there in January against populist Andrej Babiš. Soon after Pavel’s swearing-in, Pavel and Čaputová traveled to Kiev together to pledge their support to Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky. In her home country, the president has repeatedly been insulted as an “American agent” for her commitment to Ukraine from the Fico camp.
In Germany, Čaputová has received several awards. In January, the Schwarzkopf Foundation Young Europe honored her “for her courage in taking a stand against organized crime, for minority rights – especially for Roma – and for an ecologically sustainable future”. Previously, she had received the Freedom Prize from the Friedrich Naumann Foundation in Frankfurt’s Paulskirche last November.
Čaputová still believes in decent and value-based politics
The fate of the country does not depend on her alone, said Čaputová at the end of her announcement. “Please don’t take my decision not to run again as proof that decency can’t win.” A decent and value-based policy will only collapse if nobody believes in it anymore. “I still believe in her.”
Current surveys give the President reason for such confidence. Robert Fico’s Smer-SD is still ahead with almost 20 percent voter approval. But Čaputová’s former party, the liberal, pro-European party Progresívne Slovensko, is catching up and is currently in second place.