Tomáš PETŘÍČEK

is a senior non-residential fellow at the Centre of Global Political Economy at the Institute of International Relations in Prague. He is also director of Progressive Analytical Centre, the Prague based think-tank. Since 2022 he is member of the Board of Trustees of the Boris Nemtsov Foundation for Freedom.

The 2025 Czech general election marked a significant shift in the country’s political landscape. For the second consecutive time, no democratic centre-left party entered the Chamber of Deputies – an outcome that cements the collapse of Social Democracy in one of Central Europe’s historically strongest Social-Democratic states. The vote produced an overwhelming majority for conservative, populist and far-right forces, leaving only a fragile liberal centre. Beyond domestic politics, the Czech result deepens the region’s sovereigntist turn, foreshadowing a more sceptical stance toward the EU, its Green Deal and support for Ukraine.

The absence of the centre-left from the Czech parliament for a second consecutive term is not a temporary electoral setback. It is a structural and self-inflicted collapse. The Czech Social Democratic Party (SOCDEM), once the backbone of the country’s democratic transformation and a proud member of the European Social-Democratic family, has in recent years chosen a path of self-marginalisation.

In the 2025 election, SOCDEM joined the Stačilo! coalition – a grouping of anti-systemic, nationalist and pro-Kremlin forces that campaigned, among others, against Czech membership in the EU and NATO, and openly challenged Europe’s climate and solidarity agenda. This alliance was a decisive rupture. Rather than defending the European project and democratic values, the party lent its legitimacy to narratives of resentment and nationalism, aligning itself with forces that have long opposed the very idea of social democracy.

This was not a tactical mistake but a strategic, moral and reputational capitulation. In a period of economic insecurity, geopolitical anxiety and social fragmentation, Czech Social Democrats failed to articulate a credible and self-confident vision of protection and progress. Instead of rebuilding trust through solidarity, they attempted to imitate extremists – and, in doing so, discredited the entire tradition of Social Democracy in the country. Millions of voters who once saw the left as their representative voice have been left without a political home. The result is not only a parliamentary absence, but a vacuum of representation in Czech politics.

A political landscape tilted against Progressives

The broader outcome of the 2025 election confirms the anti-progressive consolidation of Czech politics. The vast majority of seats are now held by conservative, right-wing populist and far-right parties, from Andrej Babiš’s ANO to Tomio Okamura’s SPD and the Motorists for Themselves. The conservative alliance SPOLU remains a key pole, but even its politics is defined by the rejection of progressive agendas – particularly in social and environmental policy. The centrist-liberal forces, the Pirates and STAN, survived with small parliamentary representations. Both include progressive-minded individuals, yet neither defines itself as a progressive project, nor possesses the political weight to set the national agenda. Their position within the new parliament will be defensive at best.

There is one limited positive note: the far-right SPD performed below expectations, suggesting that Czech voters still draw a line against open extremism. However, that boundary now runs within a landscape where populism and conservatism dominate the mainstream, and where progressive and egalitarian perspectives have almost disappeared from the national conversation.

The campaign itself reflected this ideological narrowing. Debates centred on fear – of migration, the European Green Deal and ‘dictates from Brussels’. Social questions such as inequality, housing, education, or healthcare were pushed aside. In this sense, the Czech election was not simply a reflection of voter preferences, but of a depoliticised democracy, where political marketing and populism dominate social and political debate.

Europe and the sovereigntist turn

The new political configuration will have significant implications for the European Union and its progressive project. The future Czech government will likely take a more critical and obstructive stance on key European priorities. First, on climate and the green transition, it will join other Central European actors in framing the Green Deal as an ‘elite imposition’ rather than an opportunity for innovation and fairness. Second, on support to Ukraine, Prague’s stance will likely become more hesitant and ambivalent, reflecting the influence of nationalist rhetoric and ‘peace at any cost’ discourse.

This evolution represents a further normalisation of sovereigntist politics in Central Europe. The Czech result will reinforce the axis of cooperation between forces linked to the Patriots for Europe and the Europe of Sovereign Nations (ESN) groups in the European Parliament – adding weight to those who view European integration as a threat to national autonomy. For the EU, this means that reaching consensus on key reforms, from enlargement to the energy transition, will become even more challenging.

At a symbolic level, the Czech shift matters because it signals the loss of one of the region’s potential constructive actors in European politics – a country that once combined pragmatic Europeanism with a strong Social-Democratic voice. That voice has now fallen silent.

Lessons for Europe’s Progressives

The Czech case offers a clear warning to Progressives across Europe. When Social Democracy abandons its moral compass and values to chase relevance through populist and extremist mimicry, it not only fails to win new voters – it also legitimises illiberal narratives and erodes the foundations of democracy. The crisis of Czech Social Democracy is, in this sense, not uniquely Czech. Across Europe, many centre-left parties struggle to reconcile economic justice with cultural and ecological transformation, to speak to both the working class and the urban middle class. The temptation to dilute values for short-term visibility is real – but it is also fatal.

Rebuilding progressive politics in Central Europe will require more than new leadership. It will depend on reviving civic and political infrastructure, investing in education, participation and media pluralism, and developing a new narrative of security and solidarity that resonates with citizens facing multiple insecurities – economic, ecological and social. The 2025 Czech election is not only a domestic story of political decline. It is part of a broader European pattern – a mirror reflecting the erosion of Social Democracy’s social roots and moral confidence in some countries. The disappearance of the centre-left from the Czech parliament for the second time shows how quickly representation can vanish when political courage and coherence fade.

For Europe’s Progressives, the lesson is clear: democracy cannot be defended without credible, value-based alternatives. When the left abandons its role as the guarantor of social protection and democratic Europe, others will define both – and against it. Reclaiming that space requires not nostalgia, but the courage to renew the positive promise of solidarity, justice, progressive patriotism and Europe itself.

Photo credits: Shutterstock.com/Alexandros Michailidis