Trending Now
We have updated our Privacy Policy and Terms of Use for Eurasia Group and its affiliates, including GZERO Media, to clarify the types of data we collect, how we collect it, how we use data and with whom we share data. By using our website you consent to our Terms and Conditions and Privacy Policy, including the transfer of your personal data to the United States from your country of residence, and our use of cookies described in our Cookie Policy.
{{ subpage.title }}
Political violence is on the rise again, at home and abroad
In a small town out in coal country, a lone assassin shoots a controversial populous leader. The leader miraculously survives, and his supporters blame the press and his political opponents for fomenting violence. Does that sound familiar? Months before Donald Trump was shot in Pennsylvania in the first assassination attempt of its kind in America in 40 years, Slovak Prime Minister Robert Fico took a bullet to the stomach during a visit to Central Slovakia. But Fico is just one of many leaders or high-level candidates who have been attacked in democracies around the world in recent years.
Across the democratic world, political violence and violent political language are becoming more common again as polarization deepens, viewpoints harden, and political differences start to feel like existential battles. Here in the US last year, there were more than 8,000 threats of violence against federal lawmakers alone, a tenfold increase since 2016. And as we head into the most contentious and high-stakes election in America's modern history, people are bracing for more. A poll taken just after the attempt on Trump's life showed that two-thirds of Americans think the current environment makes political violence more likely. Who is responsible for stopping this slide into violence? Is it our leaders, our media outlets, or our social media platforms? Is it ourselves? Unless things change, we will be lucky if it's another 40 years before this happens again in the US.
Watch full episode: Trump, Biden & the US election: What could be next?
Season 7 of GZERO World with Ian Bremmer, the award-winning weekly global affairs series, launches nationwide on public television stations (check local listings).
New digital episodes of GZERO World are released every Monday on YouTube. Don''t miss an episode: subscribe to GZERO's YouTube channel and turn on notifications (🔔).
Slovkia's Prime Minister Robert Fico is in serious condition after being severely wounded in an assassination attempt.
Slovakia "on the brink" after PM shot
Robert Fico, the outspoken, nationalistic prime minister of Slovakia, was severely wounded in an assassination attempt on Wednesday.
Fico was shot while greeting a crowd in a small town in central Slovakia. Police arrested the shooter, whom local media have identified as a 71-year-old disaffected writer and security guard. Slovakia’s interior minister said the shooting was “clearly” politically motivated but would not release info on the suspect.
As of this writing, Fico was in stable but serious condition after undergoing a lengthy surgery.
Slovakia is extremely polarized. Last fall, Fico won a bitterly contested election against the Progressive Slovakia party, running on a platform of halting military aid to Ukraine, rejecting refugees, and defending traditional values.
He’s long been a controversial figure — he last served as PM between 2013 and 2018, when he was ousted amid mass protests over his government’s alleged involvement in the murder of two investigative journalists.
Slovakia is now bracing for more conflict. The interior minister has warned that with tensions high, the country stands on the brink of “civil war.” Members of Fico’s party angrily blamed “progressive media” and the opposition, raising the prospect of violent street-level reprisals. Any moves by the government to exert pressure on the media could quickly stoke tensions with Brussels over EU rules.
More: How and why did Czechoslovakia manage to split up peacefully in 1993? Read our explainerhere.Leaders of various political parties attend a televised debate ahead of Slovak early parliamentary election.
Will Slovakia elect a pro-Russian premier?
On Saturday, Slovaks hit the polls in an election that has Brussels and Washington on edge. The wily left-wing, populist former PM Robert Fico, who wants to end support for neighboring Ukraine and block the country’s accession to NATO and the EU, is running neck-and-neck with the liberal Progressive Slovakia party.
Fico (that’s “FEE-tso” if you want to say it like a Slovak) has served two prior stints as PM. He was ousted in 2018 amid allegations that his associates had murdered an investigative journalist for reporting on corruption. Since then, Slovaks have suffered a succession of weak and unstable caretaker governments.
Fico has surged in the polls in part by playing on Slovaks’ historic pan-Slavic affinity for Russia, which some say has been boosted by recent Russian influence campaigns. He has also pledged to crack down on migration.
Critics and supporters alike think Fico could try to become an “illiberal” European leader in the mold of Hungary’s PM Viktor Orbán. Given the EU’s unanimity requirements for major policy initiatives, a Fico-led government could complicate the union’s future EU expansion initiatives or sanctions against Russia – particularly in a partnership with Budapest.
That said, no matter who wins on Saturday, a fragmented vote means it will be hard to form an ideologically coherent government. That could limit any radical changes under Fico – but could also undermine a liberal government. Still, Fico’s strong showing is already a potential bellwether of cracks in the EU’s Ukraine policy, even among Kyiv’s closest European neighbors.
For more on this: How did Slovakia become an independent country without bloodshed? Read our look back at the unusual “Velvet Divorce” here.