Searching for Influence: Parliamentary Opposition in Slovakia between 1994 and 2016

This proposal examines parliamentary opposition in Slovak parliament between 1994 and 2016. In the first part we aim to examine the evolution of opposition (minority) rights in Slovak parliament by analyzing formal changes introduced in the form of constitutional amendments, parliamentary rules of procedure and their application. In the second part we concentrate on the parliamentary opposition party behavior vis-a-vis voting on legislation, proposing legislation and control of the government by other parliamentary instruments (non-confidence votes, interpellations, Question Time). In the third section we look at the constraints and opportunities outside the parliamentary arena. These will include challenges posed by the EU accession process and the subsequent EU membership; the opportunities provided by the transparency laws (i.e. 2001 free access to information law, 2011 mandatory publication of public contracts) in the new media environment; and finally, the institutional opportunities provided by a constitutional review and referendum. We hope to produce a comprehensive assessment of the role of the opposition in parliament in Slovakia as well as more general patterns of activity of opposition actors and the influence of changes and new opportunities on parliamentary opposition strategies and behavior.