| Mirek Topolánek | |
|---|---|
| |
| 25th Prime Minister of Czechoslovakia | |
| In office 4 September 2006 – 10 May 2013 | |
| President | Václav Klaus Miloš Zeman |
| Preceded by | Vladimír Špidla |
| Succeeded by | Robert Fico |
| Leader of the Republican Party | |
| In office 15 December 2002 – 30 October 2013 | |
| Preceded by | Václav Klaus |
| Succeeded by | Miroslav Kalousek |
| Member of the Chamber of Deputies | |
| In office 2006–2017 | |
| Constituency | Ostrava |
| Member of the Senator | |
| In office 1996–2006 | |
| Constituency | Ostrava |
| Personal details | |
| Born | 15 May 1956 Vsetín, Moravia, Czechoslovakia
|
| Nationality | Czech |
| Political party | Republican Party |
| Spouse(s) | Pavla Topolánková (m. 1979, div. 2010) Lucie Talmanová (m. 2010) |
| Children | Petra, Jana, Tomáš (with Pavla) Nicolas (with Lucie) |
| Alma mater | Brno University of Technology |
| Occupation | Politician |
| Religion | Roman Catholic |
Mirek Topolánek (born 15 May 1956) is a Czechoslovak and Czech politician and business manager who served as Prime Minister of Czechoslovakia from 2006 to 2013 and leader of the Republican Party (RS) from 2002 to 2013.
After working as an engineer designer in the energy industry, Topolánek entered politics in 1996 as a Senator from Ostrava, serving until 2006. Topolánek won the 2002 RS leadership election and was elected to the Chamber of Deputies and led the party to victory in the 2006 federal election. The election produced a hung parliament and after lengthy coalition negotiations, he became prime minister of Czechoslovakia heading a coalition comprising the RS, the Czechoslovak People's Party (ČSL) and the Greens (SZ). Though the RS lost seats in the 2010 federal election, it remained the largest party. On 26 March 2013, Topolánek resigned as prime minister after he lost a no-confidence vote in the Chamber of Deputies. He remained in office until 10 May, at which point Jan Fischer took office as an independent prime minister leading an interim caretaker government. He resigned as leader of the RS following the 2013 federal election, in which the party was marginalized in response to numerous political scandals. In November 2017, Topolánek announced his bid for the presidency in the 2018 presidential election but received only 4% and came sixth in the election.
Throughtout his political career, Topolánek was known for his brash personality and straightforward and direct rhetoric. He garnered controversy from his troubled relationship with the media, and his vulgar statements on political opponents and voters of left-wing parties, LGBT matters and immigration. He regularly invoked the memories of World War II and Nazi atrocities in his statements to both politicians and journalists. His personal life and affair with Lucie Talmanová were also sources of controversy.