Slovakia's Referendum on Lifetime Benefits for Officials and Reinstating Special Prosecutor Fails Due to Low Turnout

A referendum held in Slovakia on January 18, asking voters two questions, has failed due to low voter turnout. With 99.5% of precincts reporting, only 16.1% of eligible voters cast ballots. A minimum of 50% turnout was required for the referendum to be valid.

This is another unsuccessful referendum in Slovakia; the only one to have succeeded was the 2003 vote on joining the European Union.

The Questions

Voters were asked two questions. The first concerned lifetime allowances for former top officials—specifically, prime ministers and parliamentary speakers who served at least two full terms. Under current law, these individuals receive a lifelong pension equivalent to a parliamentary salary. This allowance was introduced after the 2024 assassination attempt on Prime Minister Robert Fico; previously, only former presidents were entitled to such benefits.

The second question was whether to reinstatement the special prosecutor's office responsible for investigating serious crimes and corruption. That office was abolished in 2024 on the initiative of Fico's coalition government, along with a dedicated police unit. The move drew sharp criticism at home and abroad, prompting thousands of Slovaks to take to the streets in protest.