The proposal matters as it could reshape participation ahead of the next parliamentary elections in 2027 in the country of 5.4 million people. Demonstrators gathered outside parliament in the capital, while similar protests took place in Košice, Banská Bystrica and abroad, including Brussels and Prague. Critics argue that the move targets pro‑Western voters, while Prime Minister Robert Fico says it aims to prevent fraud.
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Opposition leader Michal Šimečka told the Bratislava crowd that democracy was at stake, drawing parallels with recent political shifts in Hungary. In the 2023 parliamentary election, almost 59,000 Slovaks abroad voted by mail, with over 80 per cent backing opposition parties and just 6.1 per cent supporting Fico’s Smer‑SD party.
Under the proposed changes, overseas voters would no longer be able to vote by post but would instead have to cast ballots in person at embassies, a shift that opposition figures say would make participation harder for many citizens living far from diplomatic missions. The plan has intensified tensions around Fico, who returned to power in 2023 and has faced repeated protests over his efforts to restrict checks and balances, curtail media freedom and reshape the judicial system.
The debate over the overseas‑voting reform underscores how the 2027 elections may become a de facto referendum on Fico’s vision of an illiberal‑leaning Slovakia, even as supporters insist the changes are about security and transparency.
