Slovak neo-Nazi party leader to run for president next year

Marian Kotleba, who heads far-right party that uses Nazi salutes and considers NATO to be a terror group, nominated by party for largely ceremonial post

By AP 31 May 2018, 8:37 pm

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Banska Bystrica governor and far-right political leader Marian Kotleba speaks to journalists after casting his vote during the Slovak regional elections in Banska Bystrica, Central Slovakia, November 4, 2017. (Jan Miskovsky/CTK via AP)

BRATISLAVA, Slovakia — The chairman of Slovakia’s neo-Nazi parliamentary party said Thursday he will be running in next year’s presidential election.

Marian Kotleba heads People’s Party Our Slovakia, which openly admires Slovakia’s time as a Nazi puppet state during World War II. Party members use Nazi salutes, consider NATO a terror group, and want the country out of the alliance and the European Union.

Kotleba’s party has 14 lawmakers in the 150-seat parliament.

Kotleba says he has accepted his party’s decision to nominate him as a candidate for the largely ceremonial post. The election is scheduled for the spring.

For now, there’s no a clear front-runner for the post, after President Andrej Kiska announced earlier this month he won’t be seeking a second term.

The party suffered a blow last November after its chairman failed to get re-elected as the head of a regional government.

Five years ago, Kotleba shocked the country by winning in the central region of Banska Bystrica.

But in last year’s regional election, independent candidate Jan Lunter won the region with 48.5 percent of the vote, comprehensively beating Kotleba, who received 23.2%, Slovakia’s Statistics Office said at the time.

In an unprecedented move, most ruling coalition and opposition parties agreed to support Lunter to try to defeat Kotleba.

Slovakia’s prosecutor general also asked the Supreme Court last year to ban the party after allegations that its goal is to destroy the country’s democratic system.