Vaclav Klaus is the new Czech President
Radio Prague's Rob Cameron has been covering the election throughout this Friday - we join him now to discuss the outcome.
"Well, as you can imagine, there are scenes of enormous excitement here. The victory - I have to point out, was unexpected. As early as an hour ago people were saying it was going to be another political stalemate, that there was going to be a fourth vote, and all of a sudden one of Mr Klaus's colleagues came running down the corridor, shouting 'It's Klaus - he's won!'. He won by the closest of margins, he won by one single vote. That means that not only was he supported by the Communist Party, apparently he was supported by several members of the ruling coalition, probably members of the Social Democrats."
Were you able to get a look at any reaction from Mr Klaus's opponent Jan Sokol?
"I am afraid that I haven't been able to see Jan Sokol yet, but I'm sure he will be a very disappointed man this evening because he had been assured by the prime minister that the coalition would unite behind him and ensure that he be elected. That hasn't happened - he's been humiliated like the coalition's first two candidates, and the prime minister has been humiliated as well, because this leading opposition figure has become the president of the Czech Republic, and has succeeded Vaclav Havel."
As you say this is, in many ways, a major defeat for the governing coalition... what is the speculation now concerning the future of Prime Minister Vladimir Spidla as, say, the chairman of the Social Democrats, the largest governing party?
"Well, I think it's too early to say, really, it's too early, I wouldn't like to speculate on that. I think the only thing we can say for sure, now, today, is that Mr Spidla's position is weaker than it was this morning. It was already weak, now it's weaker. On the other hand, this agony within his own party over electing a new president is over - at least that is over. But now he has to face the prospect of Vaclav Klaus - here - at Prague Castle."
