Czechs vote in Senate and regional elections in the aftermath of massive flooding

Czech citizens went to the polls on Friday in a two-day vote to elect a third of the seats in their Parliament’s upper house as well as their regional elections. 

The voting took place amid the backdrop of massive flooding that hit the country and other parts of Central Europe in recent days. 

The flooding claimed at least 24 lives in the region, five of them in the Czech Republic. 

State officials helped dozens of the hardest-hit own organise their ballot in the northeast of the country, where schools and other buildings that serve as polling stations were submerged and damaged. 

Interior Ministry officials took over the organisation of the vote in five towns where local authorities were preoccupied with clean-up and recovery efforts. 

In some places, voting took place in shipping containers, tents or out in the open. 

The current ruling five-party coalition led by Czech Prime Minister Petr Fiala has a clear majority in the 81-seat Senate where 27 seats are up for grabs in the two-round election. 

Runoff elections will take place next week. 

The Czech Parliament’s lower house dominates the legislative process, but its Senate plays an important role in passing constitutional amendments and approving Constitutional Court judges.