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Three opposition parties in the Czech Republic signed a coalition agreement Monday that will return populist billionaire Andrej Babis to power as prime minister, ending five years of center-right rule.
The accord between Babis's ANO party, the far-right Freedom and Direct Democracy (SPD), and the smaller Motorists party secures 108 seats in the 200-member lower house of parliament, giving the coalition a working majority.
The agreement distributes cabinet positions across the three parties, with ANO claiming the largest share of ministries. Babis's party will control nine ministerial portfolios, including the powerful finance ministry, as well as the interior, health, education, labor, industry, regional development and justice ministries.
The SPD will oversee defense, agriculture and transport, while the Motorists will lead the foreign affairs, culture and environment ministries. The coalition also plans to create a new ministry for sport, prevention and health, which will fall under Motorists' control.
Under the power-sharing arrangement, the prime minister will come from ANO, while the SPD will nominate the speaker of the Chamber of Deputies.
Babis, who served as prime minister from 2017 to 2021, said the coalition partners "were united by their shared goal of replacing the outgoing government."
SPD Chair Tomio Okamura described the deal as "the end of a government that harmed Czech interests," while Motorists leader Petr Macinka called it "the first step toward change demanded by voters."
The coalition follows parliamentary elections held Oct. 3-4, in which ANO won decisively with approximately 34.7% of the vote. The governing center-right Spolu coalition finished a distant second with about 23.2%.
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