Czech Prime Minister Andrej Babis has suffered a significant electoral setback after his ruling coalition failed to win a single seat in Senate elections held over the weekend.

Final results from the two-day ballot showed that candidates linked to pro-Western opposition parties won 22 of the 27 contested seats in the 81-member chamber, retaining their existing majority in the upper house of parliament.

Babis's centrist ANO movement, also known as the YES party, did not gain any additional seats, leaving it with 14 senators.

The populist billionaire prime minister described the outcome as "catastrophic."

"We certainly didn't expect that we wouldn't win a single Senate seat in this election," Babis said, while vowing to press ahead with his government's agenda regardless of the result.

The Senate vote was the first electoral test for Babis since he won parliamentary elections in October 2025, which returned him to power after a four-year break following his first term as prime minister.

Although the lower house of parliament holds the primary legislative role, the Senate carries significant weight in passing constitutional amendments and approving Constitutional Court judges. The opposition's continued control of the chamber is therefore likely to complicate Babis's legislative ambitions.

Among the government's planned measures is an unpopular reform of funding for the country's public broadcasters, which has drawn criticism from Czech journalists.

Babis's euroskeptic coalition has also ended direct military support for Ukraine and has opposed European Union climate policies.