2003 Czech presidential election
Open-knowledge reference entry
Indirect presidential elections were held in the Czech Republic in January and February 2003 to elect a new President. The Parliament of the Czech Republic failed to elect a candidate on the first two ballots on the 15 and 24 January. However, on the third round of the third ballot on 28 February, Václav Klaus was elected.
Background and procedure
In 2003 Václav Havel had served the maximum 2 consecutive terms as President of the Czech Republic, with his second term ending on 2 February 2003. A joint session of the Parliament of the Czech Republic was held on the 15 January 2003 to elect his successor.
Before the constitution was amended in 2012 to establish direct presidential election, the President of the Czech Republic was elected indirectly by a joint session of the Czech Parliament. Each ballot had 3 rounds, with a candidate needing an absolute majority of both the 200 members of the Chamber of Deputies and the 81 members of the Senate in order to be elected in the first round. When no candidate achieved a majority in both houses of parliament in the first round, then a second round was held between the best-placed candidate in the Chamber vote and the best-placed candidate in the Senate vote, again with an absolute majority needed to get in both houses, but only among the members who were present at the election.
If the second round was also unsuccessful, then in the third round a candidate needed to win a majority of all present members of parliament, but with votes of both chambers being taken together. So if all the members of parliament were present a candidate would need 141 votes, from a combination of deputies and senators, in order to be elected in the third round.
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