Low turnout invalidates Slovakia vote on Fico lifetime benefits
Slovakia's referendum on abolishing lifetime benefits for Prime Minister Robert Fico and other former senior officials failed after voter turnout reached only 16.1%, well below the 50% threshold required for the result to be legally valid.
The referendum also asked voters whether to restore the Special Prosecutor's Office and the National Crime Agency, institutions previously responsible for investigating corruption, organized crime and other serious offences.
According to the Slovak Statistical Office, turnout stood at just 16.1% after votes from 99.5% of polling stations had been counted, the Associated Press reported.
The referendum was triggered after the opposition collected around 350,000 signatures in support of the initiative. Slovakia has a population of approximately 5.4 million.
The Associated Press noted that only one of Slovakia's ten national referendums has ever met the legal turnout requirement—the 2003 vote approving the country's accession to the European Union. All others failed because participation fell below the required threshold.
Under current Slovak law, prime ministers and parliamentary speakers who have served at least two terms receive lifetime benefits equivalent to the salary of a member of parliament. The provision was introduced after the 2024 assassination attempt on Fico, who was seriously wounded in a shooting following a government meeting. Previously, only former presidents were entitled to such lifetime payments.
The Special Prosecutor's Office, which investigated corruption, organized crime, extremism and other serious offences, was abolished following reforms introduced after the attack on Fico, a move that sparked protests across Slovakia.
Fico did not take part in Sunday's referendum.
He remains one of the few European leaders to maintain public contacts with the Kremlin. According to Astra, he visited Moscow on 9 May 2026.
Translation by Iurie Tataru
