PRAGUE—Czechs start voting on Friday in a parliamentary election expected to hand power to Andrej Babis, a wealthy businessman turned politician who has pledged to sweep aside traditional parties, boost investment and keep out refugees.
The central European country has enjoyed rapid economic growth, a balanced budget and the lowest unemployment in the European Union, but opinion polls nevertheless show strong voter support for Babis’s ANO movement and other protest parties. Although immigration to the Czech Republic is virtually non-existent, fear of it has played a big part in the campaign, with nearly all parties pledging to fight any attempts by the EU to force the Czechs to accept refugees distributed across the bloc.
