Lukáš Vlček (born 27 February 1982) is a Czech politician and businessman who has served as Czech Minister of Industry and Trade in Petr Fiala's Cabinet since October 2024[1] and as first vice-chairman of Mayors and Independents since July 2022. He has been both a member of the Chamber of Deputies of the Czech Republic and mayor of Pacov since 2021. Vlček previously served as a representative of the Vysočina Region from 2012 until 2021.

Lukáš Vlček
Minister of Industry and Trade
Assumed office
8 October 2024
Prime MinisterPetr Fiala
Preceded byJozef Síkela
Vice-chairman of Mayors and Independents
Assumed office
23 July 2022
Preceded byJan Farský
Member of the Chamber of Deputies of the Czech Republic
Assumed office
9 October 2021
Representative of the Vysočina Region
In office
13 October 2012 – 13 December 2021
Representative of Pacov
Assumed office
21 October 2006
Personal details
Born (1982-02-27) 27 February 1982 (age 42)
Pelhřimov, Czechoslovakia
Political partyMayors and Independents
Children2

Early life and education

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Vlček was born on 27 February 1982 in Pelhřimov.[2] He graduated with a master's degree in regional development and administration at Masaryk University, Faculty of Economics and Administration.[3] Since 2006, he has been the deputy chairman of the board of the joint-stock company Sompo, which provides comprehensive services in the field of waste management.[4] Vlček has also been a member of the board of directors of the Pevak Pelhřimov cooperative since 2006, which deals with the sale of water and the management and maintenance of waterworks facilities.[5] He later became an executive and partner with a stake in the private consulting firm WHV Projekt.[6]

Political career

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Early political career

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In the 2004 Czech regional elections, Vlček failed to be elected as a non-party candidate for US-DEU as part of the Green Party coalition for the Vysočina Regional Representative, but was unsuccessful.[7] He became a regional representative only after the 2012 regional elections as an independent candidate.[8] In the 2016 regional elections, Vlček was leader of the joint candidate of STAN and SNK-ED in the Vysočina Region from the position of an independent member[9] and eventually defended the mandate of regional representative.[10]

Vlček was elected in the 2006 Czech municipal elections as a representative of the town of Pacov, later becoming mayor of the town.[11] He defended the position of town representative in the 2010 and 2014 Czech municipal elections, the former as an independent candidate.[12][13]

In April 2017, Vlček was elected chairman of the regional organization of the STAN movement in the Vysočina Region.[14] He received the title of Best Mayor of the Vysočina Region during his tenure as mayor,[15] but resigned in 2021 to become mayor of the town.[16]

Member of Mayors and Independents

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In the 2020 Czech regional elections, he led the joint candidate of the STAN and SNK ED movement in the Vysočina Region[17] and defended the mandate of the regional representative.[18] Between 2020 and 2021, he served as deputy governor of the Vysočina Region for agriculture on 18 November.[19][20]

In the 2021 Czech parliamentary election, Vlček ran as a member of the STAN movement in second place among the candidates of the Pirates and Mayors coalition in the Vysočina Region.[21] He received over 8,000 preferential votes and became a member.[22] At the extraordinary convention of STAN in July 2022, Vlček was elected as vice-chairman, replacing Jan Farský in the position.[23]

In the 2022 municipal elections, he ran for the council of Pacov from the second place as STAN candidate and defended the mandate of town representative again.[24]

In the 2024 Czech regional elections, Vlček ran for the Representative Office of the Vysočina Region from the 7th place candidate of the "Mayors for Vysočina" coalition, winning the mandate of representative by finishing third place.[25] Later that September, he was appointed Minister of Industry and Trade following Jozef Síkela's resignation.[26] Shortly before taking office, Vlček stated that he considered the Greens Party agreement for Europe to be an opportunity for the Czech Republic.[27]

Personal life

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Vlček lives in Pacov with his wife Hana and their two children.[28]

References

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  1. ^ Soukup, Jaroslav (8 October 2024). "Vláda je opět kompletní". Novinky.cz (in Czech). Borgis. Retrieved 8 October 2024.
  2. ^ "Ing. Lukáš Vlček, DiS". Naši Politici (in Czech). Archived from the original on 27 March 2016. Retrieved 15 March 2016.
  3. ^ Cikrt, Tomáš (2 June 2014). "Pacovští vsadili na profesionalitu". Obce sobě (in Czech). Retrieved 3 March 2016.
  4. ^ "Úplný výpis z obchodního rejstříku | Sompo". Obchodní rejstřík (in Czech). Retrieved 3 March 2016.
  5. ^ "Úplný výpis z obchodního rejstříku | Pevak Pelhřimov". Obchodní rejstřík (in Czech). Retrieved 3 March 2016.
  6. ^ "Úplný výpis z obchodního rejstříku | WHV Project". Obchodní rejstřík (in Czech). Retrieved 3 March 2016.
  7. ^ "Volby do zastupitelstev krajů konané dne" (in Czech). Czech Statistical Office. Retrieved 3 March 2016.
  8. ^ "Volby do zastupitelstev krajů konané dne 2012 | Kraj Vysočina" (in Czech). Czech Statistical Office. Retrieved 3 March 2016.
  9. ^ Kreml, Karel (2 March 2016). "Starostové, radní a chirurg. STAN představili šest zbývajících kandidátů na hejtmany". Mayors and Independents (in Czech). Archived from the original on 4 March 2016.
  10. ^ "Volby do zastupitelstev krajů konané dne 2016" (in Czech). Czech Statistical Office. Retrieved 9 October 2016.
  11. ^ "Volby do zastupitelstev obcí 2006 | Obec Pacov – výběr kandidátní listiny" (in Czech). Czech Statistical Office. Retrieved 3 March 2016.
  12. ^ "Volby do zastupitelstev obcí 2010 | Obec Pacov – výběr kandidátní listiny" (in Czech). Czech Statistical Office. Retrieved 3 March 2016.
  13. ^ "Volby do zastupitelstev obcí 2014 | Obec Pacov – výběr kandidátní listiny" (in Czech). Czech Statistical Office. Retrieved 3 March 2016.
  14. ^ "STAN na Vysočině má nové vedení". Mayors and Independents (in Czech). 28 April 2017. Retrieved 9 August 2017.
  15. ^ Svatošová, Jitka (11 September 2018). "Nejlepším starostou z Vysočiny je Lukáš Vlček z Pacova". Kraj Vysočina (in Czech). Archived from the original on 19 December 2021.
  16. ^ "Vlčka vystřídal Kocour. Pacov má nového starostu". Jihlavská Drbna (in Czech). 21 April 2021. Retrieved 22 May 2021.
  17. ^ Hájek, Pavel (16 February 2020). "Starostové a nezávislí kandidují na Vysočině v koalici s SNK-ED jako Starostové pro Vysočinu". Mayors and Independents (in Czech). Retrieved 21 February 2020.
  18. ^ "Volby do zastupitelstev krajů konané dne 2020 | Kraj Vysočina – Všechny kandidátní listiny" (in Czech). Czech Statistical Office. Retrieved 15 October 2020.
  19. ^ "Hejtmanem Vysočiny se stal Vítězslav Schrek. Pětičlenná koalice má 32 z 45 křesel". Czech Radio (in Czech). 18 November 2020.
  20. ^ Singr, Martin (7 December 2021). "Poslanec Vlček jako radní končí, vystřídá ho Hájek, starosta z Pelhřimovska". Deník (in Czech). Vltave Labe Media. Retrieved 19 December 2021.
  21. ^ "Naši lidé pro vaši budoucnost". Pirates and Mayors (in Czech). Retrieved 29 July 2021.
  22. ^ "Výsledky koalice Piráti+STAN v okresech". Mladá fronta Dnes (in Czech). Mafra. Retrieved 9 October 2021.
  23. ^ Menšík, Jan (23 July 2022). "Předsedou STAN zůstává Rakušan". Novinky.cz (in Czech). Borgis. Retrieved 7 October 2024.
  24. ^ "Volby do zastupitelstev obcí konané 2022" (in Czech). Czech Statistical Office. Retrieved 18 September 2022.
  25. ^ "Volby do zastupitelstev krajů konané 2024 | Kraj Vysočina" (in Czech). Czech Statistical Office. Retrieved 4 October 2024.
  26. ^ Chodil, Jakub (26 September 2024). "STAN nominuje na post ministra průmyslu Vlčka". ČT24 (in Czech). Czech Television. Retrieved 27 September 2024.
  27. ^ Gričová, Andrea (2 October 2024). "Vlček se chce zaměřit na energetiku. Green Deal považuje za příležitost". ČT24 (in Czech). Czech Television. Retrieved 3 October 2024.
  28. ^ Knapová, Alexandra (31 October 2012). "Lukáš Vlček: starosta, sportovec a nejmladší člen zastupitelstva". Deník (in Czech). Vltave Labe Media. Retrieved 3 March 2016.