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Andrej Danko elected as new Slovak Parliament chairman

Xinhua, March 24, 2016 Adjust font size:

Andrej Danko was elected as the new Slovak Parliament chairman on Wednesday.

The leader of the second strongest coalition entity, the Slovak National Party (SNS), received in a secret ballot 112 votes from the 150-member House on Wednesday.

Danko is replacing Smer-SD's Peter Pellegrini in the second highest constitutional post in Slovakia.

"We're living at a time with a fight to preserve statehood ahead of us and one for gaining a good position for Slovakia in the EU," said Danko in his inaugural speech.

"I've always striven to be a person who wouldn't promote xenophobia and racism in politics. I want to look for the good. I realised yesterday how dangerous the use of arms, resolving problems with violence and playing on the lowest instincts and emotions are," said Danko, in reference to the terror attacks in Brussels.

Slovak Parliament will retain also four vice-chairs for the new electoral term. The vote took place during the inaugural House session and confirmed the previously agreed nominations, Martin Glvac (Smer-SD), Bela Bugar, Andrej Hrnciar (Network) and Lucia Nicholsonova (Freedom and Solidarity). Endit