Marek Benda is chairman of the ODS parliamentary group.
Marek Benda is chairman of the ODS parliamentary group.[1] He is also chairman of the Prague ODS. [3] On 10 October 2026 a statement of his prompted speculation about the future of party leader Martin Kupka. Benda subsequently explained his words.[1] He gave the explanation at an ODS press conference on the election results, where he said he had been asked whether the results could weaken Martin Kupka's position. [1] In his view the election results, on the contrary, strengthen Kupka's position and put an end to speculation about replacing the leader, and he expressed support for Kupka. [1]
On 11 October 2026 he took part in the Sunday Debate of Czech Television on the election results, in which guests discussed forming coalitions, cooperation at the municipal level and the significance of the Senate.[2] On the programme Benda called the ODS result in Prague sad and said that both Spolu and the Czech Pirate Party had been weakened by disputes between them, while the Starostové won. [3]
In the 65-member Prague city assembly, Starostové and Spolu each won 17 seats, Praha sobě 13 and ANO 11. [3]
Asked about the visibility of Mayor Bohuslav Svoboda, Benda said he was not sure whether the label "sleeping mayor" had been fair. [3]
Benda also congratulated Petr Hlaváček of the STAN movement and expressed his conviction that ODS and STAN would soon agree on a coalition in Prague. [3]
Sources
- Ekonomický deník — 10 October 2026
- ČT24 — 11 October 2026
- Blesk.cz — 11 October 2026