Home Politics Slovenian lawmakers back new government

The Slovenian parliament on Friday approved a minority government led by former comedian Marjan Šarec, ending more than two months of political stalemate since an inconclusive election.

Šarec’s center-left LMS party struck a coalition deal with the Social Democrats, the Modern Centre Party, pensioners’ party Desus, the centrist SAB and the Left party. The latter will not formally participate in the government.

Together they will have 43 seats in the 90-seat parliament (that number rises to 52 with the support of the Left party).

The coalition received the support of 55 lawmakers on Friday, with 31 voting against. Šarec now has 15 days to present his Cabinet picks, according to Slovenia’s Delo.

LMS came second in a June 3 election, winning 12 percent of the vote. Out in front was the anti-immigrant Slovenian Democratic Party (SDS), led by Janez Janša, which won 25 percent of the vote but was unable to find coalition partners. Janša had campaigned alongside Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbán.

The election was held after Prime Minister Miro Cerar of the Modern Centre Party quit following a referendum defeat on a railway project and worsening relations with his coalition partners.


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