While the favorites from the pre-election poll are tactical and don’t want to reveal the number of applicants collected, others are already proudly announcing that they have secured the required limit. A fierce election race awaits them exactly half a year – January 13 and 14, 2023.

“This way, outsiders can send a signal that they have what it takes and their candidacy is getting closer. That should motivate other citizens to sign their petitions,” explains Otto Eibl, a political scientist who specializes in election campaigns. Those who are currently given a greater chance of success through surveys may have the opposite.

“Theoretically, it could be that the collection could stop because people might feel like they could do without them,” he added, adding that some may also be covering up the fact that the collection isn’t doing as well as they thought. .

For now, the team of General Petr Pavel, the former chancellor of Danuša Nerudová and union leader Josef Středula are keeping the information about the signatures collected confidential. However, businessman Karel Janeček did not want to reveal his status. The team wanted to express themselves at the turn of summer and fall. Applications for candidacy must be submitted no later than November 8.

“We are not going to publish the number of signatures collected yet, because we will start the signature campaign and big contacts only after the summer break. Now it won’t be an exact number,” Markéta eháková of Petr Pavla’s team told Práv.

A union member from the Center gave a similar answer. “Volunteers and individual supporters who download the petition sheet from the website are gradually sending signed originals by post. We are planning the first signature checksum at the beginning of the second half of the summer,” he told Právu.

On the other hand, Jiří Kotab, who describes himself as the first physically disabled candidate for Czech president, has boasted past the fifty thousand mark. Businessman Tomáš Březina also has seventy thousand signatures, as his campaign director Jaroslav Navrátil puts it.

Former director of the Office of Energy Regulatory (ER) Alena Vitásková stated that she has more than 40,000 signatures. About halfway there is former sports commentator Karel Divi.

According to his words, former chancellor Tomáš Zima is also close to ten thousand signatures, and KSČM candidate Josef Skála also talks about the “five-digit number”. Signatures were also collected by theologian Ivo Mare, SPD MEP Hynek Blaško and senator Marek Hilšer, who failed to run for Castle in 2018.

Polls consider former prime minister Andrej Babi to be the main favorite in the election, who is not expected to announce whether he will take part in the election until early November.