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Czech Republic faces Russian interference ahead of crucial legislative elections
The Czech Republic is confronting a potential Russian interference campaign just days before its legislative elections on October 3–4, 2025. Authorities announced an investigation after identifying nearly 300 TikTok accounts linked to Russia that promote anti-NATO and anti-EU parties. These accounts generate between 5 and 9 million views per week, exceeding the reach of most major political leaders in the country.
The accounts, identified by Czech analysts at Online Risk Labs, support multiple radical parties simultaneously, including the far-right SPD and the far-left coalition Stacilo!, as well as the populist right-wing PRO party. The accounts often use AI-generated content with videos in Russian, Vietnamese, German, or Romanian, and frequently omit Czech diacritics, yet they could significantly influence young voters, as TikTok is popular among the 18–24 age group in the country.
Experts warn that the operations are part of a broader Russian strategy to amplify antisystem content and support parties favorable to Moscow. The Czech Telecommunication Office (CTU) has received multiple complaints and referred the issue to the European Commission for oversight of major platforms.
Prime Minister Petr Fiala, of the center-right coalition, stressed the stakes of the elections: whether the Czech Republic will remain a strong, free democracy aligned with the West or shift toward the East. Current polls show the opposition party ANO, led by former Prime Minister Andrej Babis, leading and potentially needing support from SPD and Stacilo! to form a majority. A victory for right-wing populists could align the country closer to leaders like Viktor Orbán in Hungary and Robert Fico in Slovakia, both friendly with Russia.