Pro-Russia candidate wins Slovakia’s presidential election

Warsaw | Voters in Slovakia have strengthened the grip of Russia-friendly political forces in Central Europe, handing victory in a presidential election to a candidate who opposes providing military and financial aid to Ukraine.

With 99 per cent of the votes counted on Saturday (Sunday AEST), the official tally showed Peter Pellegrini, an ally of Slovakia’s populist prime minister, Robert Fico, the winner with 53 per cent of the vote in a presidential runoff. Despite the presidency’s limited powers in Slovakia, the election was widely watched as a test of strength between political camps with starkly different views on Russia.