The ANO movement has lost its city councillors in Turnov. They will now sit as independents, and the local branch of the movement has also ceased to exist. Jaroslav Knížek, the leader of the Turnov candidate list, who is also no longer an ANO member, told the Czech News Agency that they did not want to be burdened by national politics. According to him, no one remained in the local branch, and the second councillor elected for the movement also left ANO.[1][2]
ANO won four seats in the 27-member Turnov council and finished third. It was in opposition in the city. The election was won by the Independent Bloc of Mayor Tomáš Hocke, which improved on its previous result by four seats to 13. The new city leadership has not yet been agreed, but according to the Czech News Agency, the coalition is expected to continue in its current form.[1]
Knížek said he wants to pursue local politics as an independent councillor and does not want to be burdened by national politics, which, in his view, is not just an issue for ANO but for other parties as well. He admitted that his decision was also influenced by the way the Chamber of Deputies debated transferring the financing of Czech Television and Czech Radio to the state.[1][2]
Previously, MP David Pražák from Semily ended his ANO membership and will remain in the Chamber of Deputies as an independent. According to the Czech News Agency, the councillors elected for ANO in Semily, where the movement won six seats, are also leaving the movement along with him. Three of the seats will be held by former ANO members and three by non-party councillors. Pražák is expected to become mayor of Semily. He attributed his departure to personal reasons and to national politics interfering with regional affairs, and admitted that the first reading of the government bill on financing Czech Television and Czech Radio, which he did not attend, also had an influence, though not a decisive one. In Česká Lípa, ANO lost three of its ten city councillors.[1]
Coalition in Česká Lípa with Former ANO Members
According to Novinky.cz, representatives of Živá Lípa, ODS, the Společně grouping, and three councillors who left the ANO movement signed a memorandum in Česká Lípa on cooperation in the next electoral term. This was announced on Sunday, 25 October 2026, by Jakub Mencl, the leader of Živá Lípa and the party's candidate for mayor of the city. The new coalition is expected to hold 17 seats in the 25-member council.[3]
In the seven-member city executive board, Živá Lípa is to have three seats, ODS two, and Společně and the former ANO members one each. The outgoing city administration was run jointly by ANO and Živá Lípa, which finished first and second respectively in the 2022 municipal elections; according to Novinky.cz, ANO lost eight percent of the vote in this year's election. Živá Lípa had previously stated that it wanted a coalition without ANO and SPD.[3]
The coalition wants to elect three deputy mayors instead of two. It plans to present its policy statement later and have it signed by 15 December 2026.[3]
Chronology
- — The Jihlava city council elected Petr Ryška of ODS mayor again at its inaugural meeting; he received 33 of the 35 votes in an open ballot. The new coalition consists of Tým pro Jihlavu and STAN, and the ANO movement moved into opposition. ČTK / České noviny iDNES.cz
- — The Přerov city council elected Petr Vrána of the ANO movement mayor again; 24 of the 33 members present voted for him. The coalition consists of ANO, ODS and the Přerováci s podporou nových lidovců grouping. Novinky.cz Hanácká Drbna
- — In České Budějovice, the groups HOPB/STAN, ANO, Czech Pirate Party and Společně pro Budějovice began talks on a new coalition that would hold 26 of 45 council seats without the winning Naše Česko movement led by regional governor Martin Kuba. Zdopravy.cz Novinky.cz
- — The ANO movement lost all its municipal representatives in Turnov, who will now act as unaffiliated, and the local ANO branch thereby ceased to exist. ČTK / České noviny ČT24
- — All four ANO councillors elected in Turnov announced their departure from the party, with its local branch in Turnov ceasing to exist entirely, following earlier departures of politicians in Semily and Česká Lípa. FORUM 24 Echo24
- — In Česká Lípa, Jakub Mencl, leader of Živá Lípa, announced a memorandum on a new coalition of Živá Lípa, ODS, the Společně group and three councillors who left the ANO movement; Mencl is to become mayor. Novinky.cz
Sources
- ČTK / České noviny — 29 October 2026
- ČT24 — 29 October 2026
- Novinky.cz — 25 October 2026