Prague, A populist billionaire at odds with the European Union who featured in the Pandora Papers was tipped to win tight two-day Czech elections as the second day of voting began on Saturday.
Prime Minister Andrej Babis is seeking a second straight victory for his populist ANO party despite his brushes with the law.
The 67-year-old food, chemicals and media mogul is facing police charges over alleged EU subsidy fraud and the bloc’s dismay over his conflict of interest as a businessman and a politician.
Last weekend, the Pandora Papers investigation showed he had used money from his offshore firms to finance the purchase of property in southern France in 2009, including a chateau.
He slammed the allegations as a smear campaign, and opinion polls still peg the former communist as the election favourite, with support reaching up to 30 percent.
Voting in the village of Zadni Treban southwest of Prague on Saturday, Jana Selucka said she wanted opposition parties to prevail.
“I saw the extraordinary interest in voting yesterday, which was surprising. People definitely want a change that will make our lives better,” she told AFP.
“I want Babis to quit. I want a more transparent democracy, I want to get rid of his criminal cases, and I want international respect for us. It has been a shame so far,” said Prague voter Jakub Kratochvil.
But, as he cast his ballot in the northern town of Lovosice, Babis called for “stability for this unstable period”.
“We should not change the government now,” he said.
Polling stations will close at 1200 GMT, with the results expected later on Saturday.
