2026 Slovak referendum
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4 July 2026
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| Outcome | Proposals failed as voter turnout was below 50% | |||||||||||||||||||||
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1. Do you agree with the abolition of the so-called lifetime pension—for example, for Robert Fico—as provided for in Section 24a(1)(b) of Act No. 120/1993 Coll. on the Salaries of Certain Constitutional Officials of the Slovak Republic, as currently in force? | ||||||||||||||||||||||
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2. Do you agree that the Special Prosecutor's Office and the National Criminal Agency should be reinstated? | ||||||||||||||||||||||
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A two-part referendum was held in Slovakia on 4 July 2026.[1] The question was on whether to cancel life payments for leaders after their terms expire.[2][3][4]
Although a very large majority of those that voted supported the proposals, it, nevertheless, was not adopted as less than 50% of all eligible voters in the country exercised their right to vote in the referendum, a requirement under current Slovak law.
Background
[edit]The referendum came from a petition organized by the Democrats party which was signed by more than 350,000 citizens.[5]
Questions
[edit]The two questions on the referendum paper was posed as:
1. Súhlasíte so zrušením tzv. doživotnej renty, napríklad, pre Roberta Fica, ustanovenej v § 24a ods. 1 písm. b) zákona č. 120/1993 Z. z. o platových pomeroch niektorých ústavných činiteľov Slovenskej republiky v aktuálnom znení?
"Do you agree with the abolition of the so-called lifetime pension—for example, for Robert Fico—as provided for in Section 24a(1)(b) of Act No. 120/1993 Coll. on the Salaries of Certain Constitutional Officials of the Slovak Republic, as currently in force?"
2. Súhlasíte s tým, aby boli obnovené Úrad špeciálnej prokuratúry a Národná kriminálna agentúra?
"Do you agree that the Special Prosecutor's Office and the National Criminal Agency should be reinstated?"[6]
Results
[edit]Polling stations were opened from 07:00 to 22:00.[7] As only 16% of the electorate turned out to vote while a majority of votes and a minimum of 50% turnout was required to pass the proposals, the referendum failed.[8]
Question 1
[edit]| Choice | Votes | % | |
|---|---|---|---|
| For | 658,937 | 94.61 | |
| Against | 37,553 | 5.39 | |
| Total | 696,490 | 100.00 | |
| Valid votes | 696,490 | 98.76 | |
| Invalid/blank votes | 8,737 | 1.24 | |
| Total votes | 705,227 | 100.00 | |
| Registered voters/turnout | 4,369,989 | 16.14 | |
| Source: Volby | |||
Question 2
[edit]| Choice | Votes | % | |
|---|---|---|---|
| For | 650,490 | 93.82 | |
| Against | 42,876 | 6.18 | |
| Total | 693,366 | 100.00 | |
| Valid votes | 693,366 | 98.32 | |
| Invalid/blank votes | 11,861 | 1.68 | |
| Total votes | 705,227 | 100.00 | |
| Registered voters/turnout | 4,369,989 | 16.14 | |
| Source: Volby | |||
See also
[edit]References
[edit]- ↑ Blackburn, Gavin (20 April 2026). "Slovakia to vote in July referendum on scrapping lifelong payments for politicians". Euronews. Retrieved 25 April 2026.
- ↑ "Slovaks to vote in a July referendum on lifelong payments for Prime Minister Fico and others". The Washington Post. 20 April 2026. ISSN 0190-8286. Retrieved 25 April 2026.
- ↑ "Slovaks to vote in a July referendum on lifelong payments for Prime Minister Fico and others". AP News. 20 April 2026. Retrieved 25 April 2026.
- ↑ "Viac ako 10 miliónov za referendum, kde jednou z otázok je renta za 2,7 milióna - Worldnews.com". WN. Retrieved 25 April 2026.
- ↑ "Slovaks to vote in a July referendum on lifelong payments for Prime Minister Fico and others". ABC News. 20 April 2026. Retrieved 25 April 2026.
- ↑ "Otázky predložené na rozhodnutie v referende". Štatistického úradu SR. Retrieved 4 July 2026.
- ↑ "Metodický pokyn na prípravu a zabezpečenie referenda a spracovanie výsledkov hlasovania v referende" (PDF). Ministerstvo vnútra Slovenskej Republiky (in Slovak). January 2023. p. 9. Archived (PDF) from the original on 20 January 2023. Retrieved 20 January 2023.
- ↑ "Slovak referendum on lifelong payments for populist Prime Minister Fico fails due to low turnout". Associated Press. Retrieved 5 July 2026.
