The winner of Czechia’s October parliamentary election, billionaire ex-prime minister Andrej Babiš’ populist ANO party, has signed a coalition agreement with the far right Freedom and Direct Democracy (SPD) and anti-Green Motorists for Themselves Party.

Following ANO's victory in the Czech general election, Babiš swiftly entered talks with SPD and the Motorists to form the next cabinet, and was tasked to do so by the country’s President Petr Pavel on October 27. Combined, the three parties wield a comfortable 108 majority in the parliament of 200 and could form the most rightwing cabinet in the country’s history.

“I would like to thank our partners in the agreement and for having agreed on cooperation and the government programme document,” Babiš was quoted as saying by Czech Radio (CRo), which shared the 17-page document in full.

The document states that the forming cabinet should have 16 ministers, including nine from the ANO party, which is also to have the prime minister post.

Babiš is widely expected to hold the post although Pavel stated earlier he wants to know how Babiš will address his conflict of interest in connection to his ties to Agrofert food, chemical and agriculture conglomerate. Babiš is also standing trial in a subsidy fraud case. He said he will abide by Czech and EU conflict of interest laws.

Babiš has faced widespread criticism against the cabinet nominees, including environmental protests against the nomination of the leader of Motorists Petr Macinka, who has questioned human involvement in climate change, to take over the environmental portfolio.

The document states that Motorists should have the culture and foreign affairs portfolios although the Motorists’ nomination of scandal-ridden Filip Turek as the country’s new minister of foreign affairs sparked an outcry among Prague liberal circles and raised questions on whether Turek meets elementary qualifications to hold a cabinet post. Pavel said he would reject Turek following a scandal on his racist, sexist and homophobic online comments.

SPD, which has advocated for Czexit, should have the defence, transportation and agriculture portfolios, and should also get the post of chairman of the parliament. It yet not clear whether SPD would nominate its leader Tomio Okamura, who faces criminal investigation over his racist anti-immigration campaign, although the move is widely expected and has sparked protests as well as a public petition (with close to 50,000 signatures) against Okamura holding the high profile post.   

The new Czech parliament held its first session on November 3 and the vote on the parliament’s chairman is expected on November 5.