Rich businessman expected to win elections in Czech Republic

Andrej Babis, nicknamed the Czech Trump, has a net worth of $4.1 billion. Polls predict he will win 25 percent of the national votes.

The populist ANO movement led by billionaire Andrej Babis is the clear favourite of Czech general elections according to latest polls on October 20, 2017. (Photo AFP)
AFP

The populist ANO movement led by billionaire Andrej Babis is the clear favourite of Czech general elections according to latest polls on October 20, 2017. (Photo AFP)

Andrej Babis dubbed the "Czech version of Trump" by Forbes, grey-haired, Slovak-born farming, media and chemicals mogul is the Czech Republic's second-richest man.

He appears poised to win this weekend's Czech general election this weekend, pushing his trademark anti-euro ticket.

He set up the populist ANO (Yes) party in 2011 as a political outsider determined to lure voters with promises of clean politics in Czech Republic.

Days ahead of the vote, the 63-year-old was still hammering home his "now or never" mantra, insisting that the ballot is a last chance for voters to get rid of "the treacherous hydra of corruption choking this country" by handing him power.

An ex-Communist who serves up doughnuts to woo voters, Babis has a net worth of $4.1 billion according to the 2017 Forbes list of global billionaires, making him richer than US President Donald Trump, who is worth $3.1 billion on the same list.

Latest polls are predicting that the Czech Trump will win 25 percent of the national vote in parliamentary elections.

TRT World's Sara Firth has more on the story.

Loading...
Route 6