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ANO (political party)
Czech political party / From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
ANO (lit. 'Yes'), previously known as ANO 2011, is a conservative[20] and right-wing populist[21] political party in the Czech Republic, led by businessman Andrej Babiš, who served as Prime Minister from 2017 to 2021.
ANO ANO | |
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Leader | Andrej Babiš |
Deputy Leaders | Karel Havlíček Richard Brabec Alena Schillerová Radek Vondráček |
Chamber of Deputies Leader | Alena Schillerová |
Senate Leader | Jaroslav Větrovský |
MEP Leader | Klára Dostálová |
Founded | 11 May 2012; 12 years ago (2012-05-11) |
Headquarters | Babická 2329/2, Prague |
Think tank | Institute for Politics and Society |
Youth wing | Young ANO[1] |
Membership (2021) | 2,676[2] |
Ideology | |
Political position | Centre to right-wing[19] [under discussion] |
European affiliation | Alliance of Liberals and Democrats for Europe (2014-2024) |
European Parliament group | Patriots for Europe (2024–present)[nb 1] |
Colours | Indigo |
Slogan | Ano, bude líp ('Yes, things will get better') |
Chamber of Deputies | 71 / 200 |
Senate | 5 / 81 |
European Parliament | 7 / 21 |
Regional councils | 178 / 675 |
Governors of the regions | 2 / 13 |
Local councils | 1,692 / 61,892 |
Prague City Assembly | 14 / 65 |
Website | |
www.anobudelip.cz | |
Formed in 2011, the party finished second in the first elections it contested in 2013, entering government as a junior partner to the Czech Social Democratic Party (ČSSD) led by Prime Minister Bohuslav Sobotka. After large gains in the 2017 election, these two parties switched places, with Babiš becoming prime minister in an ANO-led government with ČSSD as the junior partner, plus external support from the Communist Party of Bohemia and Moravia, a post-revolution first for the country. ANO was closely defeated in the 2021 election by the Spolu coalition, and went into opposition for the first time. The party has performed consistently strongly in Czech elections since 2013, winning every European Parliament election it has entered, and participating in regional and municipal administrations around the country.
The party's ideological character is contested by political scientists, though it is widely considered to be populist in nature. After being formed predominantly as an anti-corruption vehicle, the party has at different times been considered centrist, liberal, conservative or right-wing by different commentators, leading to a further characterisation as a syncretic or catch-all party. More recently, the party has positioned itself to the right, co-founding the national conservative Patriots for Europe party at the European level, in which it sits with other Eurosceptic, right-wing parties from around the European Union.