Financial Times, 30.3.2014
Andrej Kiska wins Slovak presidential election
... The defeat was a result of the normally fractured centre-right uniting around Mr Kiska's candidacy while Mr Fico failed to garner much enthusiastic support from his traditional electorate. "Fico simply failed to mobilise his voters. Many were disappointed with the performance of his government," said Grigorij Meseznikov, head of the Institute for Public Affairs, a Bratislava think tank. "People also supported the division of power and not the concentration of power under Fico's leadership."
Financial Times, 28.3.2014
Slovak prime minister in bitter presidential showdown
... In the second round, a gaggle of smaller centre-right candidates have thrown their support behind Mr Kiska, who appears to be benefiting from a wariness among Slovaks in handing too much power to Mr Fico. Although no opinion polls have been published in the week before the election, Grigorij Meseznikov, head of the Institute of Public Affairs, a Bratislava think-tank, felt that Mr Kiska was narrowly ahead. "I think Kiska's potential is higher than Fico's," he said. Although both men differ little over issues such as Slovakia's ties to the EU, the campaign has taken on a bitter personal tone in recentdays. "Many Smer voters feel the country is heading in the wrong direction. Fico may have lost them," said Mr. Meseznikov.
