It’s No Joke: The Slovenian Left Coalition Nominated Former Comedian Šarec for Prime Minister

Representatives of five left-wing Slovenian parties on Wednesday nominated Marjan Šarec, a comedian who became a politician, for the mandate of the next Slovenian government, signaling the potential end of the political stalemate that has persisted since the parliamentary elections on June 3, which did not yield a clear winner.

The signatures for Šarec’s candidacy for future prime minister, alongside his List of Marjan Šarec (LMŠ), were also provided by representatives of the Social Democrats (SD) Dejan Židan, the Modern Centre Party (SMC) Mire Cerar, the Alenka Bratušek Party (SAB), and the Democratic Party of Pensioners (DESUS) Karla Erjavca, totaling 43.

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Instead of the initial announcements that a decision on the mandate would be made as early as Monday, Šarec’s group now announces that the vote on the mandate of the new government will take place on Friday next week.

The Slovenian Democratic Party of former Prime Minister Janez Janša, the strongest individual party in parliament with 25 representatives, could not find a coalition partner to form a government.

Šarec is a former actor and comedian whose second term as mayor of Kamnik in northern Slovenia ended this year.

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Šarec has the support of 43 representatives for the so-called “minority project government,” three short of a majority, but also the promise from the Left Party (L) that they will support his election during the secret ballot, and later the newly elected ministers if they agree on a cooperation protocol with the five parties of Šarec’s coalition, including all three parties from the previous technical government of Mire Cerar.

The Left Party (L) will make a final decision by Friday, and in the meantime, they expect that a referendum will express and support such a form of cooperation with the future government and its entire membership.

The balance of power in the future government is still not entirely clear, but media leaks suggest that the position of president of parliament will go to the president of the Social Democrats (SD) Židan, along with three other ministerial portfolios, and that Cerar is counting on the position of Minister of Foreign Affairs or Minister of Justice, which Karl Erjavec, the president of the Democratic Pensioners, may also be interested in.

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Slovenian media warn that by the date of the vote, things may become complicated, although it seems that all five parties believe that such a government could be stable, despite the fact that its work will need to be constantly coordinated, not only at party levels but also with the Left Party (L), which remains outside the government but is willing to support its survival if it agrees to social concessions aimed at strengthening social security, public health, and education, as well as reducing defense costs.