Ivan Bartoš (born 20 March 1980) is a Czech civil rights activist and politician for the Czech Pirate Party, who served as the Minister of Regional Development and Deputy Prime Minister for Digitalization in the Cabinet of Petr Fiala from December 2021 to September 2024. He has been a member of the Chamber of Deputies of the Czech Republic since October 2017, and was chairman of the Pirate Party from 2009 to 2014, and again from 2016 to 2024.[1]

Ivan Bartoš
Bartoš in 2021
Leader of the Czech Pirate Party
In office
2 April 2016 – 22 September 2024
Preceded byLukáš Černohorský
Succeeded byTBD
In office
7 October 2013 – 6 June 2014
Preceded byVacant
Succeeded byLukáš Černohorský
In office
24 October 2009 – 25 June 2013
Preceded byKamil Horký
Succeeded byVacant
Deputy Prime Minister for Digitalization of the Czech Republic
In office
17 December 2021 – 30 September 2024
Prime MinisterPetr Fiala
Minister of Regional Development
In office
17 December 2021 – 30 September 2024
Prime MinisterPetr Fiala
Preceded byKlára Dostálová
Succeeded byMarian Jurečka
Member of the Chamber of Deputies
Assumed office
21 October 2017
Personal details
Born (1980-03-20) 20 March 1980 (age 44)
Jablonec nad Nisou, Czechoslovakia
(now the Czech Republic)
Political partyCzech Pirate Party
Spouse
Lydie Franka Bartošová
(m. 2015)
Alma materCharles University
Websitepirati.cz

Early life

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Bartoš was born on 20 March 1980 in Jablonec nad Nisou, an industrial town in northern Bohemia. He studied information studies and librarianship at the Faculty of Arts, Charles University in Prague and participated in a student exchange program at the University of New Orleans. Subsequently, Bartoš worked in the IT industry and was elected chairman of the Pirate Party in October 2009.[2][3]

Political career

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Leader of the Pirate Party

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Bartoš led the party into its first national elections in 2010, with the Pirates receiving 0.8% of the vote and therefore no representation in the Chamber of Deputies.[4]

Bartoš was the party's leading candidate again in legislative elections in 2013. The party won 2.66% of the vote, not reaching the 5% electoral threshold.[5] Bartoš was the Pirates' leading candidate for the 2014 European Parliament election, but the party missed the 5% electoral threshold, receiving 4.78% of the vote.[6] In June 2014, Bartoš resigned as party leader.[7] After the party's poor results in the 2024 European Parliament election and 2024 regional elections, Bartoš resigned as party leader on 22 September 2024.[8]

Chamber of Deputies

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Bartoš was elected party chairman again in 2016 and led the Pirates into the 2017 legislative elections, taking 10.8% of the national vote to become the third largest party in the Chamber of Deputies, with 22 out of 200 seats.[1] He served as the chairman of the Committee on Public Administration and Regional Development from November 2017 until November 2021.[9]

Bartoš was re-elected as party leader in 2018 and led the party's campaign for the 2018 local elections, where the leading Pirate candidate in Prague, Zdeněk Hřib, was elected Mayor of Prague. In 2019, Bartoš campaigned for the European Parliament election in support of the Pirate Party list and lead candidate Marcel Kolaja. The party gained 13.95% of the vote and entered the European Parliament with three MEPs.[10]

In government

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Bartoš was re-elected as party leader in January 2020. The same year in December, he became the lead candidate of the electoral coalition of the Pirate Party and Mayors and Independents (STAN) for the 2021 Czech legislative election[11] and was re-elected. Subsequently, Bartoš was nominated to serve as the Minister of Regional Development and Deputy Prime Minister for Digitalization in the Cabinet of Petr Fiala.[12]

From July 2024, Bartoš received heavy criticism from officials of construction authorities,[13] architects,[14] representatives of the Union of Cities and Municipalities,[15] and opposition politicians,[16] due to problems with the roll-out of a new digitalized system for managing construction permits. Prime Minister Petr Fiala announced on 24 September 2024 that he would propose to dismiss Bartoš as a minister on 30 September 2024, stating that Bartoš could not manage the digitization process.[17] President Petr Pavel accepted Fiala's proposal to dismiss him.[18]

Personal life and views

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Bartoš is a member of the Czechoslovak Hussite Church,[19] and has been married since 2015. He has supported anti-fascist events[20] and is a pacifist.[21] Bartoš participates in "do it yourself" culture, plays accordion, and played church organ during his youth.[19]

References

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  1. ^ a b "Czech election: Billionaire Babiš wins by large margin". BBC News. BBC. 22 October 2017. Retrieved 2 September 2024.
  2. ^ "Pirate Party 24.-25. October 2009 meeting resolution". Archived from the original on 28 April 2019. Retrieved 22 October 2017.
  3. ^ "Předsedou Pirátské strany byl zvolen Ivan Bartoš". Lidové noviny (in Czech). Mafra. 25 October 2009.
  4. ^ "Elections to the Chamber of Deputies of the Parliament of the Czech Republic held on 28–29 May 2010". Czech Statistical Office. Retrieved 2 September 2024.
  5. ^ "Výsledky voleb 2013". Aktuálně.cz (in Czech). Economia. 19 October 2013.
  6. ^ "Přehled výsledků: Nejvíc preferenčních hlasů dostal Jiří Pospíšil, druhý je Keller". Hospodářské noviny. Economia. 26 May 2014.
  7. ^ "Předseda České pirátské strany Bartoš rezignoval". Aktuálně.cz (in Czech). Economia. 6 June 2014.
  8. ^ Šopfová, Kristýna (22 September 2024). "Bartoš rezignoval na post předsedy Pirátů". Novinky.cz (in Czech). Borgis. Retrieved 24 September 2024.
  9. ^ "PhDr. Ivan Bartos, Ph.D." Chamber of Deputies of the Czech Republic. Retrieved 2 September 2024.
  10. ^ "Elections to the European Parliament held on the territory of the Czech Republic on 24–25 May 2019". Czech Statistical Office. Retrieved 2 September 2024..
  11. ^ "Lídrem koalice Pirátů a STAN má být Ivan Bartoš". ČT24 (in Czech). Czech Television. 14 December 2020. Retrieved 20 March 2021.
  12. ^ "Ivan Bartoš byl uveden do funkce ministra pro místní rozvoj". Ministry of Regional Development (Press release) (in Czech). 17 December 2021. Retrieved 24 September 2024.
  13. ^ Vaníčková, Kateřina (19 August 2024). "Stavební úředníci jsou frustrovaní a znechucení. Hrozí stávkou i odchody". iDNES.cz (in Czech). Mafra. Retrieved 24 September 2024.
  14. ^ "Ohrožujete naši existenci, píší architekti Bartošovi. Úředníci se paskvil odmítají učit". iDNES.cz (in Czech). Mafra. Czech News Agency. 13 July 2024. Retrieved 24 September 2024.
  15. ^ Vokál, Vladimír; Ventura, Tomáš (27 August 2024). "Slibovali teslu, dodali trabant. Stavbaři a obce tepou Bartošovu digitalizaci". iDNES.cz (in Czech). Mafra. Retrieved 24 September 2024.
  16. ^ Lysá, Tereza (29 August 2024). "Naprosté selhání, stínová vláda ANO ostře kritizuje digitalizaci stavebního řízení". iDNES.cz (in Czech). Mafra. Retrieved 24 September 2024.
  17. ^ "Fiala vyhodil Bartoše z vlády: Není schopen dotáhnout digitalizaci". Seznam Zprávy (in Czech). 24 September 2024. Retrieved 25 September 2024.
  18. ^ "Pavel přijal návrh na odvolání Bartoše z vlády, pirátští ministři podají demisi". Aktuálně.cz (in Czech). Economia. Czech News Agency. 30 September 2024. Retrieved 1 October 2024.
  19. ^ a b Sedlák, Jan (23 January 2017). "Cíl je změna. Prostředek je politika, říká šéf pirátů". Deník (in Czech). Jablonec nad Nisou: Vltave Labe Media.
  20. ^ Černá, Monika (17 October 2017). "Kompro na Bartoše? Ano, byl jsem na demonstracích. A nestydím se za to, vzkazuje šéf Pirátů". Euro Zprávy (in Czech). Archived from the original on 17 October 2017. Retrieved 17 October 2017.
  21. ^ Bohuslavová, Renáta (10 October 2017). "Předseda Pirátů Bartoš: Nejsme vítači migrantů a jít do vlády se nebojíme". Novinky.cz (in Czech). Borgis.
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