TOP 09 says interest in membership high

The centre-right party TOP 09, launched last week by former finance minister Miroslav Kalousek says it is receiving hundreds of requests for membership. A flash poll conducted by the STEM research centre at the weekend suggested that the new party could receive as much as 40% voter support in the early elections scheduled to take place in October. TOP 09 is currently being led by former foreign minister Karel Schwarzenberg, who held that post on behalf of the Green Party and is consistently ranked the country’s most popular politician.