Czech election: Zeman beats Drahos to win second term

Czech president milos zeman has received a 2nd time period in workplace following a decent run-off vote in opposition to rival jiri drahos.

Mr zeman, who fiercely opposes immigration and objects to european sanctions in opposition to russia, took 52% of the vote to overcome mr drahos, a seasoned-eu educational with out a earlier political enjoy.

Voter turnout on saturday was over sixty six%.

The function of the czech president is influential; mr zeman can name the high minister and sign bills surpassed via parliament into regulation.

He has promised to provide prime minister andrej babis, a billionaire businessman, a second chance to shape a central authority after his minority cabinet lost a self assurance vote in parliament final week.

Mr zeman's present day presidency does not cease until march, so he plans to reappoint mr babis subsequent month.

His position additionally permits him to rent central bank board contributors and judges.

Analysis: milos zeman wins the battle of thoughts
Czech pm immunity lifted amid accusationsthe presidential election has pondered divisions between low-earnings voters with lower education and those living in rural areas, who have a tendency to vote for mr zeman, and wealthier and well-educated citizens of bigger towns, who are probable to opt for mr drahos, correspondents say.

Mr drahos has never belonged to any political party but he instructed the bbc that he desired to "quit the climate of populism and worry in czech society" that has marked mr zeman's presidency.

In contrast to mr zeman, the sixty eight-year-vintage mr drahos is a supporter of eu and nato membership, however he opposes the ecu's quota machine for distributing migrants.

Gray line
Blow to liberals
Rob cameron, bbc news, prague

In the long run just 175,000 votes separated the 2 men as milos zeman, one in all europe's maximum outspoken leaders, won a 2nd term in office.

The result changed into a blow to liberal, seasoned-european electorate who believed jiri drahos ought to result in a exchange in czech politics. It became vindication for those who trust in mr zeman's potential to guard the usa from immigration and militant islam.

However there are continual issues about his health; laid low with diabetes, he can now slightly walk unaided.

There has been prolonged applause when mr drahos said he and his team could "carry on" - no-one's certain yet precisely what which means.

Gray linemilos zeman, 73
Joined the communist celebration in 1968 during the "prague spring" but was expelled in 1970 for opposing soviet intervention that beaten moves closer to liberal reforms
After communism fell he joined the left-leaning social democratic party and have become leader in 1993
In 2013 he became the third president of the czech republic since it break up from slovakia in 1993
In his outspoken remarks on immigration he once stated that muslims had been "impossible to integrate" into europe
Inside the european, he has fiercely adverse sanctions in opposition to moscow and has made enhancing relations with china a priority