A close ally of populist prime minister tops a pro-Western diplomat to become Slovakia’s president

BRATISLAVA, Slovakia (AP) — A close ally of populist Prime Minister Robert Fico has defeated a pro-Western career diplomat to become Slovakia’s new president, and succeed Zuzana Čaputová, the country’s first female head of state. Parliamentary speaker Peter Pellegrini received 53.26% of the vote with the ballots from almost all polling stations counted by the Statistics Office in Saturday’s runoff election, topping former Foreign Minister Ivan Korčok who had 46.73%. Pellegrini becomes Slovakia’s sixth president since the country gained independence after the split of Czechoslovakia in 1993. Čaputová, a staunch backer of neighboring Ukraine in its fight against Russia’s invasion, didn’t seek a second term. Pellegrini’s victory cemented Fico’s grip on power.