Slovak Prime Minister Robert Fico said on Friday that his government could lose its narrow parliamentary majority due to a dispute within a junior ruling party, the Slovak National Party (SNS). Fico, known for his pro-Russian views, has been attempting to resolve internal conflicts within the far-right SNS.
The party's leader, Andrej Danko, is reportedly seeking the replacement of Environment Minister Tomas Taraba, who was originally nominated by the SNS. Taraba has suggested he might form a new parliamentary group with other government deputies if he departs the cabinet, which would reduce Fico's government's three-seat majority in the 150-member parliament.
Fico stated that the SNS's personnel decision would lead to the loss of the majority and called on the SNS chairman and Taraba to provide guarantees for maintaining the majority. He also mentioned that he would retract his proposal to dismiss Taraba, filed with the country's president, if no agreement is reached within the SNS. This move would place the onus on the SNS leadership to either retain Taraba or withdraw support for the cabinet.
The internal conflict within the SNS could potentially lead to the collapse of the government or an early election if a super-majority of parliamentarians agree. Opinion polls indicate that the current ruling parties might lose power to a coalition of liberal and conservative parties in an election, though the outcome remains uncertain due to many parties polling close to the threshold for parliamentary entry.
