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Prime Minister designate Mirek Topolanek has been re-elected chairman of the Civic Democratic Party for another two-year term. On Sunday he received almost 70 percent of votes from a total of 476 delegates. No one else challenged Mr Topolanek for the post. Afterwards, he thanked those who voted for him, saying he thought it was "the right decision". Two years ago he was elected with 90 percent of the vote. But, now it is apparent the party chairman has lost some support due to recent developments in government negotiations. This week Mr Topolanek dropped an earlier demand for early elections in 2007 in favour of a solution involving all four non-communist parties, but some delegates are upset he has decided to deal with close election rivals the Social Democrats. A number of those spoke out on Saturday.

Prague Mayor Pavel Bem has been elected first deputy chairman of the Civic Democratic Party, earning the vast majority of delegate votes. Mr Bem takes over from Petr Necas, who came in second. Finance Minister Vlastimil Tlusty was third.

Mr Bem's position prior to the vote was clearly strengthened by winning results in recent municipal elections, but even so he was not expected to win as early as the first round. The mayor has often been described as an eventual successor to Mirek Topolanek, as chairman or prime minister.

Other deputy chairpersons elected on Sunday were outgoing Interior Minister Ivan Langer, Central Bohemian governor Petr Bendl, and outgoing Minister for Regional Affairs Petr Gandalovic. Petr Necas was the last to take the final deputy chairperson's post, elected in the fourth round.

Czech police, investigating whether an attendee at a skinhead concert near the south Bohemian town of Tabor on Saturday broke the law by doing the Hitler salute, have come under criticism from the human rights group Tolerance as well as Czech Senator Jaromir Stetina. The non-government organisation and the senator have said that police should have intervened to prevent neo-Nazis from gathering. A Tolerance representative has said that while lyrics sung at the concert were not explicitly racist, they contained a racist subtext. Around 250 skinheads attended the site on Saturday, while some 150 police were on hand monitoring. Officers reportedly intervened only occasionally to check attendees' identities but say they did not witness any breaking of the law. They were not asked, for example, by the town to step in.

The right-of-centre Civic Democratic Party has seen the first day of its two day party congress in the Czech capital. Prime Minister designate Mirek Toplanek - the party's chairman - is looking for a strong mandate from his party towards putting together an interim coalition government, one that would include the four non-communist parties including the Christian and Social Democrats and the Greens. Mr Topolanek stated on Saturday that if the idea did not get strong backing, he would again propose the current outgoing cabinet to the president, despite the fact it failed in an earlier confidence vote.

Politicians including Mr Topolanek - now twice prime minister designate - have been trying to form a viable government since elections ended in stalemate in June.