Civic Democratic Party (Czech Republic)
시민민주당 (체코)
A Czech centre-right, liberal-conservative party founded by Václav Klaus in 1991 when Civic Forum broke up. It governed in 1992–1997, 2006–2009, 2010–2013 and 2021–2025, always as the largest coalition partner. It drove the dissolution of Czechoslovakia and the post-communist transformation, and its chairmen Mirek Topolánek, Petr Nečas and Petr Fiala served as prime ministers.
In depth
According to the Czech source, the Civic Democratic Party was launched at its founding congress in Olomouc on 20 April 1991, which split Civic Forum into the ODS and the centre-left Civic Movement. Václav Klaus, until then chairman of Civic Forum, became party chairman and led it until 2002. In the 1992 election its coalition with the Christian Democratic Party won in every legislature, and Klaus became prime minister of the Czech Republic. That year it did more than any other Czech party to bring about the dissolution of Czechoslovakia, and in the independent Czech Republic it led the transformation and the applications to join NATO and the EU.
In 1996 it absorbed the Christian Democratic Party and again came first, but could only form a minority coalition. In 1997, amid economic decline and financial scandals, deputy chairmen called on Klaus to resign in the episode dubbed the “Sarajevo assassination”, and the dissidents founded the Freedom Union in January 1998. After the 1998 early election the party concluded the “opposition agreement” tolerating a Social Democratic government.
After the 2002 defeat Klaus stepped down, Mirek Topolánek became chairman, and Klaus was elected president in 2003. The party won the 2006 election with its best-ever result and Topolánek became prime minister, but his government fell to a no-confidence vote in March 2009. Around this time Klaus walked out of a party congress and gave up the post of honorary chairman. Petr Nečas became chairman in 2010 and led a coalition government, but after his government resigned in 2013 the party scored its worst-ever result, 7.72%, in the early election.
Petr Fiala was elected chairman in 2014, rebuilt the party, and served as prime minister in 2021–2025. Martin Kupka has been chairman since 2026. The party was a founding member of the European Conservatives and Reformists in 2009 and campaigns on low taxes, sound public finances and the transatlantic alliance.