(Repeats to additional subscribers)
* Fico may struggle after centre-right wins majority
* President gives Fico until Wednesday to do deal
* Will seek two-party coalition, won't drag out talks
(Adds quotes, details)
By Martin Santa
BRATISLAVA, June 14 (Reuters) - Slovak Prime Minister Robert
Fico will have the first shot at forming a government after his
party won the most votes in a weekend election but may struggle
to find partners among centre-right rivals that garnered a
combined majority.
Slovak President Ivan Gasparovic asked Fico and his SMER
party on Monday to try to form the next government, following
the tradition of giving the biggest single vote getter -- with
35 percent -- the first shot at creating a new government.
Fico said he would seek a two-party coalition but analysts
have given him little chance of being able to muster a majority
after centre-right rivals rejected negotiations with the leftist
SMER.
The vote showed a shift towards economic liberals whose
reforms led Slovakia into the EU in 2004 and earned billions in
foreign investment and away from SMER, which appealed to poorer
votes with pledges to help workers and curb big business.
"We will seek negotiations with all parties in parliament,"
Fico said, adding he would not drag out talks.
Gasparovic gave Fico until June 23 to try to form a
government. SMER won 62 seats in the 150-member Parliament.
Four centre-right and ethnic Hungarian parties won a
majority with 79 seats on Saturday and looked set to be able to
oust Fico with a coalition set on cutting the budget gap and
improving ties with neighbour Hungary [].
RIGHT-WING COALITION TALKS
The conservative SDKU, which ruled the euro zone's poorest
country from 1998 to 2006, was second in the vote tally with
15.4 percent. It has begun coalition talks with the conservative
Christian Democrats (KDH), the newly formed liberal Freedom and
Solidarity party (SaS), and the ethnic Hungarian Most-Hid party.
Analysts say a centre-right coalition would be better placed
to cut a budget deficit that spiked to 6.8 percent of annual
economic output last year after the export-reliant economy
shrank 4.7 percent.
The European Commission forecasts Slovakia to top the bloc
this year with a 2.7 percent economic expansion, same as
neighbour Poland.
SDKU, when it was in charge before, introduced a 19 percent
flat tax rate, sold major state companies and overhauled clumsy
pension and welfare systems -- making the country an investor
darling after it joined the EU in 2004.
The centre-right parties are regarded to be best-placed to
mend relations with Hungary strained over the status of
Slovakia's half-a-million population of ethnic Hungarians.
But many politicians on the right have questioned whether
Slovakia, a country of 5.4 million that switched its crowns for
euros in January 2009, should be helping richer euro zone
members like Greece.
SDKU and SaS have said they would refuse to pay Slovakia's
800-million-euro share of the EU bailout for Greece. Some
analysts have said they may withdraw that threat.
(Reporting by Martin Santa, writing by Jason Hovet; Editing
by Mark Heinrich)
