Jiří Paroubek announces resignation as party leader.

Social Democrat leader Jiří Paroubek announced he would stand down as party leader within 10 days following disappointing election results. He said the decision was a personal one and the party needed a new start. Mr. Paroubek said the Czech people had made their decision about which way the country should go and he respected it. He added that the election result was a defeat for the party but also, more importantly, a defeat for ordinary people. The party would have to analyse in the coming days why the final results were so at odds with the pre-election opinion polls which consistently showed the party as a clear election winner. The party would be run by its deputy chairman ahead of a final decision about who the new leader would be, he added. The final result represented a collapse in support since the last elections in 2006 when they gained around 32 percent. The resignation might improve the party's slim chances of taking part in a government.