History, The Breakup of Czechoslovakia

The results of the elections of June 1992 reflected the growing split between the two lands. The liberal Movement for a Democratic Slovakia (HZDS), led by the Slovak Meciar, and the conservative Civic Democratic Party, led by Czech Vaclav Klaus won the two largest representations in parliament; each leader became the prime minister of his own republic. Disagreements between the republics intensified, and it became clear that no form of federal government could satisfy both. In July 1992 Slovakia declared itself a sovereign state, meaning that its laws took precedence over those of the federal government.

Throughout the fall of that year, Meciar and Klaus negotiated the details for disbanding the federation. In November the federal parliament voted to dissolve the country officially on December 31, despite polls indicating that the majority of citizens opposed the split. In January 1993 Czechoslovakia was replaced by two independent states: Slovakia and the Czech Republic. Slovaks gathered for celebrations in their new nation’s capital at Bratislava.