Slovak first
July 8, 2010
Iveta Radicova has been sworn in as the first female prime minister of Slovakia. Her appointment comes after the resignation of Robert Fico earlier Thursday.
Slovak President Ivan Gasparovic carried out the ceremony ahead of the official swearing in of the new prime minister's government on Friday.
Radicova is a member of the center-right Slovak Democratic and Christian Union party, which received the second-highest number of votes in parliamentary elections on June 12.
The 53-year-old will lead a four-party coalition bringing in the Christian Democrats, the pro-business Freedom and Solidarity party and the ethnic Hungarian Most-Hid party.
The coalition government, which says it will champion fiscal discipline during its term, will hold a 79-seat majority in the 150-seat Slovak parliament.
The center-left party of former prime minister Robert Fico finished overwhelmingly with the most votes in the June elections, but was unable to secure a stable coalition deal with any of Slovakia's minor parties.
Radicova was minister for labor, social affairs and family from 2005 to 2006, and is known as a fluent English and Russian speaker.
Author: Darren Mara (AP/AFP)
Editor: Martin Kuebler