Prime Minister's wife runs for office - for rival party

Czech PM's wife provides lesson in revenge

As husbands, some politicians can be difficult dogs to keep on the porch, as Hillary Clinton memorably observed.

But what should a politico's wife do if their own particular hound has been found to stray?

The option adopted by many, including most recently by Pauline Prescott, is to stay and solve their marital difficulties behind closed doors. [..]

Pavla Topolanek, the wife of the new Czech prime minister, has come up with a novel twist on the wife-takes-revenge story.

She is, reports the Daily Telegraph, standing for election under a rival party's banner of "no to political arrogance".

Mirek Topolanek, the Civic Democrat (ODS) leader, said he was "surprised" by his wife's ambition, but not cross, a reaction not apparently shared by his party colleagues, who are said to be furious.

Mr Topolanek, who has just spent two months in tortuous political negotiations in order to form his fragile minority government, is reported by a Czech tabloid to have had a relationship with the 36-year-old deputy leader of the Czech parliament, Lucie Talmanova, who is single.

Mrs Topolanek says her decision to stand for the right-wing Politika 21 party is because her husband's party hadn't made her an offer of a candidacy and was purely to break the "traditional cliché" that wives were not expected to enter political life.

That has been greeted with scepticism by some of Mr Topolanek's colleagues. [..]

Prime minister faces double-edged political and domestic crisis

Radio Prague
08-01-2007

Under fire from the president and his party colleagues, the Civic Democratic Party leader Mirek Topolanek is now fighting for political survival. To make matters worse he faces a serious domestic crisis. Following months of speculation regarding his relationship with Lucie Talmanova, a deputy for his own party, the prime minister finally announced at the end of last week that he was leaving his wife for his mistress. [..]

Jilted wife barred from official events after failing to support PM over confidence vote

Radio Prague
[15-01-2007]

This is make or break week for Mirek Topolánek, who says he will step down as Civic Democrat chairman if his coalition fails a vote of confidence on Friday. But it is the prime minister's wife, Pavla Topolankova, who has been dominating the headlines in recent days. Though her husband is expecting a child with another woman, she pledged to stand by her man in public. But now she has been ordered to stay away from official events.


Pavla Topolankova, photo: CTK

Even after it became public knowledge that Prime Minister Mirek Topolanek was romantically involved with party colleague Lucie Talmanova, his wife continued to appear with him in public. The last official event they attended together was a New Year's Day lunch with President Klaus and his wife.

Since then it has emerged that Mr Topolanek is living with Ms Talmanova, who is pregnant. He publicly announced he had left his family and asked that their privacy be respected.


Jana Bobosikova, photo: CTK

When the affair first came to light, Pavla Topolankova took the unusual step of standing against her husband's Civic Democrats as a candidate for a tiny party, Politika 21. It held a news conference on Friday, at which leader Jana Bobosikova launched a scathing attack on the prime minister, calling him an unprincipled traitor who should resign immediately.

Pavla Topolankova made a conciliatory statement at the same event, saying she did not want a divorce and that she could forgive infidelity. But she also said she hoped her husband would lose next Friday's confidence vote; given his promise to step down it if fails, such an outcome could spell the end of his political career.

That seems to have been a step too far for her Mirek Topolanek's advisors. The Office of the Government has, she said on TV on Sunday, barred her from taking part in any official events or overseas trips with her husband.

Pavla Topolankova says she herself will decide where she appears in public. But she also seems resigned to her fate, saying she hoped to continue visiting children's hospitals and old folks' homes as the prime minister's wife. And, she said, the door remains open if her husband chooses to come home.