Final Word from Tuesday, October 20, 2015
When Bohuslav Sobotka was weak and vulnerable as ČSSD chair, he sought support from the party base by promising "real" primary elections that "all (ČSSD) members would be able to take part in." As his party position improved, the emptiness of this promise gradually became apparent, to the point that Jiří Dienstbier of ČSSD declared that the principles finally approved for choosing election candidates were a "mockery." The party's ÚVV central committee still rules the roost in terms of choosing candidates, even though the party statutes state clearly that the "final form" of the candidate lists shall be determined on the local level. It's still early, but the Jiří Rozbořil case could be the first real test of this. His support on the local level is strong, even if the ÚVV bigwigs would like to dispense with him and move on. How this turns out will be a test of whether Sobotka is still strong as ČSSD chair or is again weak and vulnerable. [Czech Republic primaries electoral]
Glossary of difficult words
vulnerable - susceptible to physical or emotional attack or harm;
mockery - an absurd misrepresentation or imitation of something; a farce or travesty;
to rule the roost - to be in complete control;
bigwig - an important person, usually in a particular sphere;
to dispense with - to get rid of.