Czech Republic: parliament fails to elect speaker

The only candidate for the post of speaker, Miroslava Nemcova from the conservative Civic Democratic Party, received 98 votes in a secret ballot, the chamber's election committee chairman Petr Tluchor said.

Photo: Czech Republic: parliament fails to elect speaker

A second-round vote was scheduled for later on Thursday, but Nemcova's election seemed unlikely.

The June 2-3 elections left the 200-seat parliament split down the middle.

The Civic Democratic Party of Mirek Topolanek won the most votes in the election and through a coalition with the Green Party and center-right Christian Democrats holds 100 seats. On the other end of the political spectrum, the Social Democrats have 74 seats, and the Communists hold 26 seats.

Prime Minister Jiri Paroubek's Social Democrats have repeatedly said that they should choose the parliamentary speaker, but have not offered Topolanek anything in exchange, the AP reports.