Direct election of the president and its constitutional and political consequences (original) (raw)

The Czech presidential elections, January 2013: Towards a more powerful head of state?

Electoral Studies, 2014

, the Czech citizens elected, for the first time in the nation's history, their head of state in a popular election. It constituted a departure from a long-standing tradition, dating back to the First Czechoslovak Republic in 1918, where the president was elected by the parliament. The indirect election of the president was also adhered to during the communist regime (1948-1989), and the Constitution of the Czech Republic, an independent state since 1993, also provided for the head of state elected by the legislature.

Dispute over the Powers of the President of the Czech Republic

Polish Political Science Yearbook, 2021

This article aims to analyze disputes and discussions on the powers of the President of the Republic, which have been happening since the establishment of the Czech Republic in 1993. These occurred when the President tried to interpret the provisions of the Constitution, took actions beyond their framework, or considered that his powers did not impose an obligation to act automatically. The disputes over the President's powers were, therefore, not the result of theoretical discussions on the constitutional order of the Czech Republic, but were the result of the President's involvement in the political life of the country, and above all, the decisions that did not correspond to the opinions and actions of the government. Disputes did not have an impact on a permanent change in the constitutional order. For example, there was no reason for an amendment to the Constitution that would extend, restrict, or clarify those powers.

Direct Presidential Election in the Czech Republic: The Rise of Tribunes?

Acta Politologica, 2023

The debate about the direct election of the Czech president within the fields of political science and constitutional law has been almost unanimously sceptical about the introduction of the popular vote. This article offers a contrary perspective developed through theorising a potential tribune function of the Czech presidents. We investigate the workings of the original office of the Roman tribunate, the place of tribune function as a democratic element within the classical accounts of the mixed constitution, and its revival in modern political theory and political sociology. We argue that the popular vote increased the tribune potential of the Czech presidency to channel Czech democracy’s discontent. If some major deficiencies of the direct vote are reformed, such as the polarising two-round electoral system, the president-tribune could constitute a popularly established check on MPs, the government, and other elites. In such a case, the introduction of the direct election could be viewed not as a systemic flaw but as an integrative feature strengthening the system of checks and balances.

Czech Constitutional Democracy: Focus on the Czech Dual Executive Power and the Future Senate

Fordham International Law Journal, 1996

The main focus of this Essay is the potential dynamic tension in the Czech dual executive power. The Czech presidency, presently occupied by the former dissident Vaclav Havel, is commonly perceived in the Czech Republic as a weak presidency. If it is true that President Havel's office can justifiably be described as weak, is this due to Constitutional restraints on the presidency, or is it a function of the personality of the current occupant of the presidency? This Essay also discusses the implications of the November 15-16, 1996 Senate elections on the Czech democracy.

Presidential cabinet in the Czech Republic: a symptom of parliamentary regime problems 1

The paper seeks to explain the rise of a presidential cabinet, which was established in the Czech Republic in June 2013. This kind of cabinet was formed exclusively by the head of state without taking regard to parliamentary parties and even contrary to their will. The presidential cabinet has been often associated with the direct election of president, since the cabinet was appointed by the first ever popularly elected president Milos Zeman. However, the paper shows that causes of the cabinet are multifold: including strong presidential powers in the government formation process, legitimacy advantage, weakness of parliamentary parties and high levels of anti-party sentiment in the Czech society.

BALTIC JOURNAL OF LAW & POLITICS IS THE CZECH REPUBLIC ON ITS WAY TO SEMI-PRESIDENTIALISM

The main aim of the article is to contribute to the bourgeoning debate on semi-presidentialism, its definition, and its characteristic features, with analysis of the empirical example of the Czech Republic, a country which, according to Elgie´s standard definition, shifted to semi-presidentialism in 2012. The author investigates whether and how Miloš Zeman, the first directly elected president of the Czech Republic, influences relations among the key political institutions in the direction of the model of a semi-presidential democracy. The paper sets out the working concept of semi-presidentialism first and, through the lenses of process tracing, analyses the goals and acts of Zeman after he entered office in January 2013. The case study of the Czech Republic sheds light not only on the recent development(s) in the Czech political system, but it can be seen as an interesting example of how strong political personalities are attempting to expand their influence on politics in a parliamentary democracy and what the possible limits of this effort are.

Constitutional Stability and Dynamics in the Czech Republic

International Comparative Jurisprudence, 2019

This article discusses the stability and dynamics of the Czech constitution, especially the ‘frame of government’. First, the circumstances of the adoption of the Czech Constitution from 1993 are described, as well as the initial problems with the implementation of bicameralism. Second, the rigidity of the constitution in formal and material sense is analysed. Here, the article demonstrates that the procedural rules for adopting constitutional acts (qualified majorities in both chambers of the Parliament) have to be considered in connection with the electoral and political system in the Czech Republic in order to get a good picture. By an overview of constitutional acts adopted since 1993, it is shown that the constitutional system has not been subject to major changes and remained rather stable. Two important exceptions, i.e. moments of constitutional development are discussed in detail: the cancellation of early election in the Chamber of Deputies by the annulment of a constitutio...

Slovakia's Presidency: Consolidating Democracy by Curbing Ambiguous Powers

2008

Slovakia's presidency: consolidating democracy by curbing ambiguous powers The constitutional amendment of 1999 established in Slovakia a semi-presidential arrangement as defined in this volume. We argue that the introduction of direct presidential elections linked crucially with the limitation of the president's powers contributed to the overall process of democratic consolidation. The 1992 constitution, with its vague and unclear provisions on separation of powers, augmented political conflicts between the president and prime minister. During 1994-1998 Slovakia's political regime had essential democratic shortcomings. Even the European Union's summit in December 1997 did not consider Slovakia as a stable democracy and therefore did not start individual accession negotiations. Only the overwhelming success of pro-democratic political parties in the 1998 parliamentary elections set the country back on the democratic path. The semi-presidential arrangement has contributed to consolidation of democracy in several ways. First, the campaign for the directly elected president united the previously deeply divided political opposition. Second, the campaign for direct presidential elections launched by the opposition parties promoted the popular mobilisation against Meiiar's government, which violated several democratic norms, ignored the separation of powers and tended to concentrate political power in the hands of its leader. Third, the 1999 constitutional amendment revitalised the previously undermined presidency that had been weakened by political clashes with the prime minister and by the fact that it remained vacant for more than 14 months (1998-1999). Finally, this institutional innovation restored the balance in the separation of powers, and semi-presidentialism proved to be a satisfactory arrangement accepted by all relevant political actors. The aim of this chapter is to examine the story of Slovakia's (semi-)presidentialism. First, we analyse political developments that led to the change of constitution and established the direct election of the president. Then we look at the 'mechanics of the system' and scrutinise the powers of the president. Finally,

Czech Presidents In Trouble: How Successful Can The System Be Against Presidential Misbehaviour?

Acta Politologica, 2023

Presidents in parliamentary regimes are generally less powerful in their competencies and serve more as moderators of political disputes rather than as the main actors of executive power. Despite this, they can often appear at the edge of constitutionality in the performance of their powers. In Central Europe, it is the President of the Czech Republic who finds the greatest discrepancy between written and politically practised powers. Constitutional actors can bring a constitutional lawsuit, a competence lawsuit, or activate against the president Article 66, transferring the performance of certain duties to the other constitutional actors. Often, however, these instruments are not used. Semi-structured interviews with experts (N = 6) in the field of constitutional law revealed to us that the Czech president has broader powers than the Constitution gives him because many constitutional actors do not file a lawsuit even if they had a significant possibility of winning. Our analysis also showed that there are some cases where the experts disagree among themselves such as on the appointment of the governor of Czech National Bank. At the same time, this work revealed the different approaches of the individual presidents in the situations studied.

The Czech Parliamentary Regime After 1989: Origins, Developments and Challenges

The article discusses the major trajectories of the developments of the Czech democratic polity after 1989. It also discusses institutional traditions of the Czech parliamentary regimes dating back to the period of the First Czechoslovak Republic in the inter-war period. The article also analyses the major problems which the Czech parliamentary regime now faces. It is argued that the direct election of the president introduced in 2012–2013 was a serious blunder made by Czech political elites. Instead, the authors of the article argue, the desirable reform efforts should focus on rationalizing the regime in terms of strengthening of the prime ministers within the cabinet and the cabinet itself within the parliamentary system. The reform of the Czech democratic polity should also include putting in pace an electoral system that would facilitate making stable and ideologically coherent government majorities.