Slovakia’s nationwide referendum, initiated by the extra-parliamentary opposition, will be declared invalid after failing to meet the constitutional turnout requirement.
Following the count from all polling stations, voter turnout reached just 16.13%, well below the required threshold of more than 50% of eligible voters. It is one of the lowest participation rates recorded in any referendum since Slovakia became independent.
According to preliminary figures from the Statistical Office, 705,227 of the country’s 4,369,989 registered voters cast their ballots. A total of 698,757 ballots were deemed valid, while only 5,218 Slovak citizens voted by mail from abroad.
Of the 10 national referendums held in Slovakia since independence, only one has produced a legally binding result—the 2003 referendum on joining the European Union. Analysts have long attributed the repeated failures of Slovak referendums to the country’s high constitutional turnout threshold, voter apathy, and frequent boycott campaigns by political opponents.
Voting results
Although the referendum failed due to insufficient turnout, an overwhelming majority of those who voted supported both proposals.
According to the preliminary results:
- 93.3% voted in favor of abolishing the lifetime pension granted to former prime ministers, while 5.4% voted against.
- 92.1% supported restoring the Special Prosecutor’s Office and the National Crime Agency (NAKA), with 6.2% voting against.
However, because turnout fell far short of the constitutional requirement, the referendum has no legal effect.
Election day
Police said voting proceeded peacefully and without any major incidents. Although several reports of irregularities were received, none required polling to be suspended.
Among the more unusual incidents, an election commission member in Žiar nad Hronom was found to have 0.81 mg/l of alcohol in his breath during a routine test. He was immediately replaced, and voting continued without disruption.
In Ružomberok, police intervened after an intoxicated man behaved aggressively at a polling station. In Košice, a woman was initially denied a ballot after presenting her passport instead of a Slovak national ID card, but was later allowed to vote after producing the correct identification.
Meanwhile, voting in Hurbanovo was extended by 15 minutes after children playing football accidentally locked the gate leading to the polling station.
Background
The referendum was initiated by the extra-parliamentary opposition party Demokrati. The party originally proposed three referendum questions, including one seeking to allow the early dissolution of parliament. However, that proposal was excluded because Slovakia’s Constitution does not permit shortening a parliamentary term through a referendum.
Voters were therefore asked to decide on two questions:
- Whether to abolish the lifetime pension granted to former prime ministers, including current Prime Minister Robert Fico.
- Whether to restore the Special Prosecutor’s Office and the National Crime Agency (NAKA), two anti-corruption institutions that were abolished by the current government.
The Demokrati party began collecting signatures in autumn 2024. Organizers submitted nearly 385,000 signatures, of which approximately 368,000 were validated.
Legal requirements
Under Slovak law, a referendum is valid only if more than half of all eligible voters participate, and the proposal is approved by a majority of those voting. Successful referendum results are published by the National Council and have the force of law.
Only Slovak citizens are eligible to vote in national referendums.
The previous referendum took place on 21 January 2023 and sought to amend the Constitution to allow early parliamentary elections through either a referendum or a parliamentary vote. It also failed because turnout reached only 27.25% of registered voters.
The latest vote was the tenth national referendum in the history of independent Slovakia.
