1. VOTE FOR ME!
the first direct presidential elections in the czech republic
Alena MACKOVÁ
Otto EIBL
Miloš GREGOR

2. SOME BASIC FACTS
:• electoral system:
• two round run-off (similar to the Lower House - Senate)
• (first round - 11-12 January 2013; second round - 25-26 January 2013)
• campaign spending limit:
• first round: 40 millions CZK (approx. 1,600.000 EUR)
• second round: 10 millions CZK (approx. 400.000 EUR)
• number of candidates: 19 (only nine of them were allowed to run - mostly partisan
candidates or candidates with some “political record from the past”)
• voter turnout
• first round: 61,31 %
• second round: 59,11 %
• rich international media coverage and unusual number of TV debates of the
candidates (tv hosts - agenda setters for public discussion)

3. BECOMING A CANDIDATE
:
gathering 50.000 signatures
from citizens
OR
getting support from ten
Senators or twenty Deputies

4. I WILL TELL YOU A STORY OF...
:
• Formally, the czech president enjoys rather restricted powers.
• How to attract voters?
• with life stories of the candidates
• with topics and issues exceeding presidential powers (“initiating the debate”)
• with metaphorical stories of “good and evil” and/or “dark past and bright future”
• with highly personalized conflicts and negative advertising

5. FINAL RESULTS
: 1st Round 2nd Round
Roithová Zuzana MUDr. MBA 4,95 X
Fischer Jan Ing. CSc. 16,35 X
Bobošíková Jana Ing. 2,39 X
Fischerová Taťana 3,23 X
Sobotka Přemysl MUDr. 2,46 X
Zeman Miloš Ing. 24,21 54,8
Franz Vladimír Prof. JUDr. 6,84 X
Dienstbier Jiří 16,12 X
Schwarzenberg Karel 23,4 45,19

6. INTRODUCING CANDIDATES:
JAN FISCHER (*1951, Prague)
:
• lifelong statistician
• since the early 1990s he led the team tallying the elections
in the Czech Republic results
• since 2003 president of the Czech Statistical Office
• member of the Communist Party of Czechoslovakia from
1980 till the collapse of the Communist regime in 1989
• former prime-minister (caretake government; 8 May 2009 –
13 July 2010)
• quite respected and popular

7. JAN FISCHER’S CAMPAIGN
:
• “early bird” - the campaign started in april 2012 with the
“Honza, don’t hide!” spot
• positioning: one of us, a decent man - center (catch-all)
position
• message: the change is possible (first step to change), men
you can trust
• image: Fischer as capable clerk, hard working, energic and
loyal independent (!) candidate
• criticism and negative campaign against him
• candidate “without content”, low integrity on political issues
• KSČM member

8. INTRODUCING CANDIDATES:
KAREL SCHWARZENBERG (*1937, Prague)
: • from 1948 to 1990, he lived in Austria where he became a
noted critic of human rights violations in the Eastern
Bloc (chair of the International Helsinki Federation for
Human Rights).
• After the collapse of communism he became a close
adviser to Václav Havel and relocated to Prague.
• in 2004 elected in the Senate (nominated by US-DEU and
ODA)
• currently, he is a leader of TOP 09 and former minister of
Foreign Affairs (from 2007 (Green Party) till 2013 (TOP 09))
• very respected and popular (especially among young
people, better educated Czechs and artists)

9. KAREL SCHWARZENBERG’S CAMPAIGN
: • positioning: responsible and decent men with good political
record from the past, successor of Václav Havel, right wing
• message: i will not step aside my path (towards good
democracy); my presidency will respect the constitution
• image: cool, cheeky and funny men, in touch with youth,
conservative
• interesting things:
• surpression of partisan identity (literally no word of TOP 09)
• very strong on social networks (Facebook)
• use of musical and cultural events (A night with Karel)
• endorsements by artists and other celebrities
• criticism and negative campaign against him
• member of “antisocial government”
• falling asleep anytime, anywhere
• too pro-german, does not even speak czech properly
• his wife does not speak czech at all

10. INTRODUCING CANDIDATES:
MILOŠ ZEMAN (*1944, Kolín)
: • member of the Communist Party of Czechoslovakia from
1968 till 1970 (expelled due to his disagreement with the
Warsaw Pact invasion of Czechoslovakia)
• 1989 joined the leaders or the Civic Forum
• former ČSSD leader (since 1993; he transformed the party
into one of the country's major parties); replaced in 2001
(then he was retired and moved to the country; due to
conflicts with Jiří Paroubek he left the party in 2007)
• former Chair of the Chamber of Deputies (1996-1998),
former prime-minister (1998-2002)
• in 2009 he founded a new party (Party of Civic Rights –
Zemanovci)
• controversial person

11. MILOŠ ZEMAN’S CAMPAIGN
: • positioning: president for “lower 10 millions”, proponent of
welfare state/opposition to the right wing government;
authentic czech; left wing
• message: stop Nečas’ government; Czech Republic - the
place I love
• image: “authentic czech” (in positive and negative way);
popular; just being himself - the old and good Miloš Zeman
• interesting things:
• supported by his daughter Kateřina (young and blonde)
• weak on social networks (Facebook)
• very strong in TV Debates
• series of billboards - important events in modern history of
the Czech Republic
• criticism and negative campaign against him
• “architect” of the opposition treaty, “same-as-Klaus” political
styl
• ugly men with unhealthy lifestyle (smoking and heavy
drinking)

12. WHO ENDORSES WHOM
:
although ČSSD recommended to vote for Zeman
Fischer’s team supported Schwarzenbergno endorsement at all

13. THE DUEL: “THE NOBLE PUNK” vs “AVERAGE CZECH
CITIZEN”
:
“a man of the past!”
“a man of the present (member of
the unpopular government)”

14. THE DUEL: “THE NOBLE PUNK” vs “AVERAGE CZECH
CITIZEN”
:
• mobilization through social
media
• phone calls to voters
• against lies and deception
• Zeman = Klaus
• successor of Václav Havel
• a vision of bright future
• no negative attacks against
Zeman (all attacks were
“spontaneous” and directed
by Schwarzenberg’s
supporters and fans)
• attempts to improve on-line
communication
• direct mail (low integrity)
• negative appeals against
Schwarzenberg (Beneš
Decrees)
• against the whole government
(personalized by
Schwarzenberg)
“a man of the past!” “a man of the present”

15. RUNNING FOR THE PRESIDENT:
PHASE ONE - GETTING THE NECESSARY SIGNATURES
:
1. O ZNAČKÁCH OBECNĚ
2. NATION BRANDING/COMPETITIVE IDENTITY -
KONCEPTUÁLNÍ VYMEZENÍ (i vůči PUBLIC
DIPLOMACY)
MILOŠ ZEMAN - THE
PRESIDENTOF THE CZECH REPUBLIC

16. THANK YOU FOR YOU ATTENTION
Alena MACKOVÁ (amackova@fss.muni.cz)
Otto EIBL (eibl@fss.muni.cz)
Miloš GREGOR (mgregor@fss.muni.cz)