Court upholds Prague elections

The Constitutional Court (ÚS) has ordered that the results from Prague municipal elections stand, after a coalition of small parties challenged a redistricting plan that they say redrew electoral zones to partisan advantage.

"Their argument, in its essence, moves in a circle," said Judge Jiří Nikodým in announcing the verdict March 29. "They didn't bring any evidence of deliberate manipulation of the election."

The final results of the municipal elections saw the right-leaning TOP 09 take the most votes but the Civic and Social Democrats partner in a controversial coalition.

The ÚS heard the case and announced its unanimous decision the same day. The court said the challenge failed to show it was the redisticting that directly led to the parties' failure to reach the City Assembly.

A group of smaller political parties led by the Green Party, Public Affairs (VV) and the Association of Independent Candidates-European Democrats sought to challenge a redistricting plan that was pushed through by a Civic Democratic Party (ODS)-led City Assembly on the eve of October 2010 local elections. The move divided the capital city into seven separate districts, which the small parties say were designed specifically to the ODS's advantage - a practice known as gerrymandering.

Under the new districting plan, the Greens, for example, received more than 200,000 votes and surpassed the 5 percent threshold that normally entitles a party to membership in the City Assembly. They have none. By comparison, the ODS, which received about four times as many votes, has 20 seats on the City Assembly. VV also surpassed the 5 percent mark but did not receive assembly seats.

Failing to reach the assembly also deprives smaller parties of the much-needed public financing that goes with gaining such seats. Green Party Chairman Ondřej Liška estimates his party will lose more than 4 million Kč.

"I am convinced that we are right," he said.

A Prague Municipal Court rejected the challenge to election results in November 2010, prompting the appeal to the ÚS.

A ruling annulling the election would have had precedence. In July 2000, then President Václav Havel filed a case against a nationwide redistricting plan put forth by the ODS-ČSSD coalition government. The court ruled in favor of the challengers. More recently, the results from the same municipal elections in two towns were nullified and forced to be rerun.

Boris Šťastný, chairman of Prague's ODS chapter, insists the redistricting was done constitutionally.

"The question is whether the court can change what the people voted for, if the power of the judiciary is higher than the power of citizens," he said, before the court announced its verdict.

But those presenting the challenge still contend the case is fundamentally about making sure each vote carries the same weight.

"The political culture and trust in democratic principles were at stake," Liška said. 

- Klára Jiřičná contributed to this report.

Benjamin Cunningham can be reached at
bcunningham@praguepost.com