The populist ANO party, led by billionaire Andrej Babis, has a clear lead in the Czech Republic’s parliamentary election but is on track to lose the majority.
ANO received 35% of the vote, according to the Czech Statistical Office, with ballots from more than 97% of the polling stations being counted on Saturday. Spolu (Together), a center-right alliance led by Prime Minister Petr Fiala, lost 23 percent.
Recommended Stories
list of 3 itemsend of list
Fiala conceded defeat and congratulated Babis shortly after the preliminary results were released.
With more than 4,400 candidates and 26 parties vying for seats in the 200-member lower house, turnout reached 68 percent, the highest level since 1998.
After the results are finalized, party leaders are expected to begin coalition discussions with president Petr Pavel on Sunday. Officials have warned that the rollout of mail-in voting could stifle the official confirmation process.
Babis cannot rule by himself because of the overwhelming showing. ANO may be supported by the Motorists, a party that opposes EU green policies, and the far-right Freedom and Direct Democracy (SPD), a party that has opposed NATO and the EU.
At the party’s headquarters in Prague, Czech Republic, on October 4, 2025, Andrej Babis, the party’s leader, addresses a press conference following the preliminary results of the parliamentary election.
Radim Fiala, the SPD deputy leader, stated on Czech television that he was prepared to support the government’s overthrow. It was important to us and it would meet the election’s goal, he said, “because we went into it with the intention of ending the government of Petr Fiala and supporting even a minority cabinet of ANO.”
Randibor pro-Russian parties performed poorly in the partial results. The far-left Stacilo! managed 8%, while SPD! Movement that was centered on the Communist Party failed to pass the 5% threshold for parliamentary session.
Babis, who oversaw a center-left-led coalition from 2017 to 2021, has recently shifted significantly to the right. He once endorsed the euro, and he now declares himself an admirer and eurosceptic toward US President Donald Trump, even distributing “Strong Czechia” baseball caps with the slogan “MAGA.”
He has also allied himself with Viktor Orban, the prime minister of Hungary, and the European Parliament’s far-right coalition.
Conor Maynard has reflected on the scandal he faced in his most recent song, which he addressed after being accused of raising a child with Charlotte Chilton.
Assistant Celebrity and Entertainment Editor, Daniel Bird
7 Images to View
Conor Maynard revealed it ‘made sense’ to focus on the paternity drama in his latest single, Cherry On Top(Image: Dave Benett/Getty Images for Hartmann House Ltd)
Conor Maynard admits the scandal he found himself in “could have been avoided.” The musician was left lost for words when it emerged that former The Traitors star Charlotte Chilton alleged she was pregnant with his child.
The singer, 32, and Charlotte met at the wrap party for the BBC programme, of which Conor’s sister’s boyfriend, Harry Clark, had won the second series, which aired in January 2024. Charlotte and Conor had a one-night stand, and it was after this that Charlotte claimed she had fallen pregnant.
Throughout Charlotte’s pregnancy, Conor remained silent after she claimed he wanted nothing to do with her daughter, Penelope, who was born last year. Shortly after Charlotte’s daughter was born, Conor took a paternity test, which revealed he was, in fact, not the father.
However, after receiving the results, Charlotte was “shell-shocked” and demanded a second test because it was believed that a male had been taking Conor’s sample. However, a second test confirmed the initial findings that Conor wasn’t the biological father.
Given the extreme autobiographical nature of his music, Conor, who is well known for hits like “Animal,” has admitted to spending a year and a half in hell on his most recent single, “Cherry On Top.” There are subtly referencing his struggles in the accompanying music video.
Including a mock press conference, featuring fictional news outlets such as Traitor Times and The Daily Polygraph, which is used during lie detector tests. Speaking to the Mirror, Conor said: “I’ve pretty much always poured what I’m going through into my music, the good, the bad, and the ugly.
It made sense to continue my custom of putting it into my music because this was a pretty intense situation to go through over the course of the past year and a half. Conor makes a subtle nod to Charlotte’s widespread media exposure and social media abuse in the video that comes with the track.
You talk too much, please shut up,” is one of the lyrics in the song, but he acknowledges that many of the lyrics were written in jest. He said, “Obviously, many of the lyrics to the song are uttered in jest, but I believe they primarily point out how this entire situation could have been avoided.
“I was always of the opinion that the situation could and ought to have been handled quietly and privately, especially since no evidence existed prior to its reaching the court of public opinion.” Although it was not beneficial because it had been carried out in the open, it is now too late to do that; instead, what is done is done. So, in my opinion, the lyric kind of emphasizes that sometimes it’s better to handle situations before shouting them out loud.
Conor only learned about Charlotte’s allegations when his team received an abundance of emails asking for a response, according to The Mirror. He now acknowledges that thanks to his supportive friends and family, he is in a better place and has been able to move on with his life, but he also recognizes that this experience will stick with him for a significant amount of time.
He assured me that I’m feeling fine. Although it’s not an experience you can forget about overnight, Conor continued, “I’ve always had so many supportive people around me, and that hasn’t changed. Every day, they assist me in putting this mess together.
Conor, however, has no regrets for Charlotte and Penelope despite going through the ordeal. He sings about how sorry he is for the other guy in his Cherry On Top lyrics, and another lyric reads, “You stole the show, so take a bow, you stole the show.”
Conor stated to fans in August that she had learned about the results of Charlotte Chilton’s request for a second paternity test regarding her baby girl, Penelope.
This test has once more confirmed that I’m not Penelope’s father, as with the previous test. Penelope’s, Charlotte’s, and my DNA were all taken at a Ministry of Justice-accredited DNA testing facility, which Charlotte requested.
The conclusions are therefore conclusive. I’m so grateful for everyone’s help because this has been difficult for me and my family. I’m pleased to see that this is finally able to be drawn out. I sincerely hope that the results of these tests will inspire everyone to find a way to move on. Conor”.
Continue reading the article.
Later, a Charlotte spokesperson stated that over the course of the 12-month ordeal, she had “fought an extraordinary battle for truth and justice with heartfelt conviction” and would “share her story in full.”
On a successful day for the Great Britain team at the New Delhi World Para Athletics Championships, Hannah Cockroft and Dan Pembroke added to their long list of world titles.
Cockroft, 30, won the women’s T34 800m ahead of British team-mate Kare Adenegan, who won silver, to earn her third gold medal at these events and her 19th overall title.
Cockroft told BBC Sport, “On every start line, I go, “I don’t know how I’m going to get round this,” but once I’m going, everything went as planned.”
“I don’t know how long this will last, or how long I can continue doing this,” he said. I’m so blessed to be able to pursue my passions.
Because it has been an active year, I’m looking forward to a quieter year and some relaxation.
Despite entering the competition unprepared and with injuries, Pembroke, 34, won a third consecutive world championship in the men’s F13 javelin with a best throw of 68.51m.
The hip abductor tear in my right leg, which is unsuitable for a javelin thrower, basically renders your run-up useless, said Pembroke.
I’ve had to rely on trying to visualize it because I haven’t thrown in four and a half weeks since coming out here.
Jonathan Broom-Edwards of Britain won a silver medal in the men’s T64 high jump, and Lydia Church won a bronze medal in the shot put with Anna Nicholson (F35), respectively.
After claiming her fifth world title at 800m with victories in the 100 and 400m, Cockroft, a nine-time Paralympic champion, won a hat-trick of gold in New Delhi.
Adenegan, 24, finished in a season’s best 2: 03.91 to claim her third silver medal of the championships in a championship-record time of one minute 49.88 seconds.
For athletes with visual impairments, Paralympic champion and world record-holder Pembroke’s best throw of 68.51m was made on his final attempt, throwing more than five meters further than the rest of the field in the F13 javelin.
Broom-Edwards, 37, who was the three-time world champion, finished second behind Temurbek Giyazov from Uzbekistan in the men’s T64 high jump with a final run of 2.00 meters just 3 cm short of the gold-medal jump.
The British team won a hat-trick of bronze medals in the shot put, led by 20-year-old Michael Jenkins.
He finished ahead of compatriot Jose Lemos Rivas and Colombian Levin Moreno Denis, who finished with silver, with the men’s F38 final record holder’s throw of 18.84m.
In the morning session, Nicholson, the team’s co-captain, placed third in the women’s F35 category for those with co-ordination issues with a personal best throw of 9.58m.
After finishing fourth at the 2019 championships, the Gateshead Harrier won her first medal at the Worlds, joining her bronze at the 2024 Paralympics in Paris.
Glasgow’s Celtic Park Date: Sunday, October 4th Kick-off: 5:00 BST
It’s difficult to get your head around the Celtic firing blanks statistic from a Thursday night full of arresting statistics.
A former swashbuckling team now finds it difficult to consistently blast its way out of a paper bag. A confident Motherwell will be in their sights on Sunday.
Brendan Rodgers’ side lost 2-0 at home to Braga on Thursday evening, which is only their fifth goalless start of the season. Celtic has never lost a goal this early in a season since 1991-92.
The message about Celtic’s creative struggles still resonates, of course, in the form of Kelechi Iheanacho’s strike, which was strangely ruled out for a ghost handball.
They are utterly out of sorts when they are attacked. Rodgers has accepted it as fact and says he needs to find a way to resolve it.
Celtic went goalless five times last season, but only once in 57 games, which is startling. Only four goals were scored in 53 games during Ange Postecoglou’s second season.
Hearts have scored almost twice as many goals as Celtic did in the Premiership. In the league, Motherwell, Dundee United, Hibs, Kilmarnock, and Livingston have all outscored Celtic. In the modern era, this kind of thing is uncommon.
Rodgers is a capable manager, and Sunday might be the start of that. Possibly . But he made a point about some of the team’s numbers from the previous season as a stark contrast before and after the defeat to Braga.
Loss of crucial game-breakers
Over the past few years, Celtic have successfully sold a lot of goals and ingenuity. And they did a terrible job of relocating it.
There was a lot of danger ahead of the time of Jota-Kyogo Furuhashi-Liel Abada or Daizen Maeda-Kyogo-Nicolas Kuhn, who was a stellar Matt O’Riley.
There were some players who could create something that would open a obstinate defense even on the worst days of the game.
Kyogo excelled at it. He had almost 20 assists and 85 goals in his stature in that time. Another 39 goal involvements were made for the previous year and a half. O’Riley added another 27 goals and 30 assists.
Since Jota (15 goals and 12 assists in his final season) left for Al-Ittihad in summer 2023), Celtic has offloaded around 227 goals and 120 assists.
Many of those players were unpredictably unpredictable, with pace, vision, and speed. They frightened opponents. The X-factor existed. They consistently stayed at a high tempo, broke through defenses, and managed to turn a difficult 0-0 into a respectable victory.
Here’s something from earlier this year since some of them will take some time to complete because we’re going back a few seasons. In the Champions League game against Bayern Munich in February, Celtic scored twice. When Kuhn scored, he was still with Celtic. Maeda remained a true Maeda.
The xG (expected goals) metric isn’t for everyone, but it does tend to support what we know to be true with the help of statistical analysis.
In the first game, they won against Bayern, with an xG of 1.37 and 1.12 respectively. Although that is modest, they were excellent on the field.
Celtic’s poor recruitment is “inescapable.”
It’s not rocket science. With a few exceptions, Celtic used to have really effective attackers, but they now don’t. Iheanacho has made a promising start through the middle while Sebastian Tounekti appears in the Jota mold.
To be honest, the rest is dull. Mada is only a shadow of himself because he eschewed the opportunity to move elsewhere in the summer. James Forrest, a 34-year-old, replaced him in Braga.
Despite Rodgers’ desperate for a goal, Michel-Ange Balikwisha and Johnny Kenny did not play for Braga. Shin Yamada and Callum Osmand, two summer signings, did not feel qualified enough to join Rodgers’ Europa League squad.
Reo Hatate is not the same person who was once at the heart of everything that made Celtic great.
The team’s legendary totem for years, Callum McGregor, has not spoken publicly. This season, he scored four goals. This season, he hasn’t scored.
Although Benjamin Nygren has scored and assisted, he doesn’t appear to have O’Riley’s skills for game design. Not yet.
McGregor correctly predicted that the new players were still adjusting to life at Celtic on Thursday night. He also claimed that the team needed to perform more quickly, slickly, and effectively in everything they did, and he was correct.
They are active all day. They are four points and five goals worse off in their first six games overall in terms of league form.
Paulo Bernardo and Hatate were the favorites to win the £11 million Arne Engels and Paulo Bernardo over Braga. Is Hatate now in trouble, or is it Engels, who has only started four games this season, because he didn’t really perform? Rodriguez hasn’t been able to extract the most from the Belgian.
It’s inevitable, but the manager doesn’t want to be drawn back into the discussion about Celtic’s subpar performance in the transfer window. It is present at every turn.
Rodgers has experienced disappointment over the loss of hamstring injury victim Alistair Johnston, who was also injured on August 20 and has been missing. The Celtic team has won just three of their eight games, but he has missed them all eight.
Colby Donovan, a teenager, has taken advantage of his opportunity in Colby’s absence, but Johnston, a strong defender, also gives Celtic’s attack more energy. He already had two goals and two assists last season at this point.
After the international break, Johnston will return, which Rodgers will be pleased to hear as he works through the issues.
An exotic dancer nicknamed The Punisher who testified against Sean ‘Diddy’ Combs during his trial has spoken out about the disgraced star’s charge
View 3 Images
P Diddy’s lawyers spoke out after the disgraced hip-hop star’s sentencing was handed down(Image: Willy Sanjuan/Invision/AP)
Disgraced music star Sean ‘P Diddy’ Combs was jailed for four years and two months on Friday and one person who testified against him has made it clear how they feel about the decision. Combs, 55, was also fined $500,000 fine, which is the highest the judge could impose.
The sentence came as the rapper was acquitted of the more serious charges of racketeering and sex trafficking in July. However, he was found guilty on two charges of transportation of former girlfriends for prostitution. During the trial, vile details emerged about Combs’ sex life and ‘freak off parties’ involving ex-girlfriend Cassie Ventura.
Ventura was among those who testified against the Bad Boy Records founder. So too was Sharay Hayes. The exotic dancer, nicknamed The Punisher, spoke during the trial to give his recollection of events.
At the time, Hayes told the court about his encounters with the musician. He claimed to have had around eight to 12 encounters with Combs and his ex-girlfriend.
Now, Hayes has revealed he believes the sentence by Judge Arun Subramanian was handed out to send a clear message that he is trying to protect victims and deter others from such behaviour.
Hayes told TMZ he believes the star truly is remorseful after Combs revealed his sorrow at events during sentencing. Hayes added: “He was on top of the world and lost it all … and has no one to blame but himself — that changed him forever.”
However, another sex worker named in trial testimony told the publication they believe Combs got off lightly. The anonymous source explained they believed the disgraced star might have got 10 years behind bars.
Other famous faces to react to the sentencing included Combs’ long-term rival, 50 Cent. The rapper, whose real name is Curtis James Jackson III, couldn’t help but take aim following the judge’s decision.
He wrote on social media: “Hey to whoever was booking Diddy for speaking engagement. I heard he won’t be able to make it, I’m available!”
Following the sentencing, Combs’ attorneys spoke outside of court to reveal they plan to appeal the sentence. His lawyers Marc Agnifilo and Brian Steel said: “We are planning to appeal, we are planning to appeal.
“We think we have strong basis to appeal – the strongest basis is that the jury reached a verdict on coercion, they found it was not coercion and I think that the judge said coercion today at least a dozen times. We think that is unconstitutional. We think that a jury verdict should mean more than our jury’s verdict seems to mean. So we are planning to appeal.”
Combs’ mother also reacted to the sentence outside of the court. As she stepped outside of the venue, she waved to the crowd that had gathered.
She had been supporting her son throughout the trial. . Upon hearing his sentence, Combs told her: “I’m sorry.” She wore a white suit and was joined by six of the star’s children on Friday.
Article continues below
READ MORE: Michelle Keegan and Rita Ora-loved brand slashes 71% off ‘salon-quality’ hair set
Finkelstein’s defense of Trump’s peace agreement, which he calls the weakest yet without a path to justice, is explained to Marc Lamont Hill.
A “Board of Peace” plan that President Trump chairs would apply to Gaza. Some in the international community have praised the decision, but others criticize how it bypasses Palestinians and provides no way for statehood. Will this agreement bring about real peace or cement the status quo, with Netanyahu promising to not completely leave Gaza?
