Party of Civic Rights – Zemanovci
The Strana prav Občanů (SPO, German party of civil rights ) is a Czech small party of the center-left spectrum, which was founded in October 2009. Behind the establishment are mainly political cronies of the former Social Democratic Prime Minister Miloš Zeman, who had left the Social Democrats in 2007 in the dispute over the political course. Zeman was the party's first as a " coach " to the side. He also led in the 2010 general election; while he was a candidate in the constituency of the then Social Democratic opposition leader Jiří Paroubek.
In the House of Representatives election in the Czech Republic 2010, the party managed with 4.33% not to jump over the five-percent hurdle and thus missed a place in the House of Representatives. Nevertheless, the relatively good outcome is likely to be gone mainly at the expense of the Social Democrats, who had lost 22.1 % around 10 percentage points from the last election. Zeman retired after the elections by the Presidency, but was elected honorary chairman. In the elections to the parliaments of the Czech regions ( Kraj ) 2012 the party won 3.08 % of the vote nationwide. In two regions (Zlín and Pardubice) but you made the jump over the 5 % threshold.
The SPO sent Miloš Zeman in the presidential election in 2013 in the race. Zeman was elected with 54.8 % for the President of the Czech Republic in the second round.
In the early parliamentary elections of 2013, the party won only 1.51%, even though she had previously partially located in the polls over the barrier clause of 5 %.
Politically the party for, inter alia, the introduction of direct elections of mayors and district chiefs.
The party was in the meantime suspected to be financed by the Russian oil company Lukoil.
Renaming
At the Congress on 30 March 2014, the party stressed the addition ZEMANOVCI ( Zeman people ) from its title and its name to Strana prav Občanů. At the same time the former party chairman Zdeněk Stengl was replaced by January Veleba. The party wanted to make a fresh start and drew inferences from the low result in the House of Representatives election in 2013, when the party had won only 1.5% of the vote.