The election of Zuzana Caputova as Slovakia's first female president was hailed Sunday as a vote for change, with the anti-graft activist expected to provide a check on a government tarnished after last year's murder of a journalist. The 45-year-old environmental lawyer's clear victory Saturday over the ruling party's candidate was a blow to the populist-left Smer-SD - the largest grouping in parliament - and could spell trouble for them in the EU elections and next year's general vote. She is a relative political newcomer known for taking part in mass anti-government protests last year after the shootings of investigative journalist Jan Kuciak and his fiancee.
The uproar toppled the then-premier. Caputova won 58.4 percent of the vote according to a final tally of results released Sunday, compared with 41.6 percent for her ruling party rival, EU energy commissioner Maros Sefcovic.