Jan Zahradil

Who is Jan Zahradil?

Jan Zahradil is a Czech politician and Member of the European Parliament with the Civic Democratic Party. He is the Chairman of the European Conservatives and Reformists group in the European Parliament, a position that he has held since 8 March 2011. He is also the President of the Alliance of European Conservatives and Reformists.

A scientific researcher by profession, Zahradil entered politics during the Velvet Revolution. He was a member of the Federal Assembly of the Czech and Slovak Federal Republic, before becoming an adviser to Prime Minister Václav Klaus. In 1998, he was elected to the national Chamber of Deputies. Three years later, he became Vice-Chairman of the ODS. Following an unsuccessful attempt to become Chairman in 2002, he was appointed First Vice-Chairman.

He was appointed an MEP on the Czech Republic's accession to the EU, in May 2004, and was elected at the top of the ODS's list at the June 2004 election. He was elected head of the Civic Democrats' delegation in the European Parliament, in which capacity he led the negotiations that founded the European Conservatives and Reformists. He was re-elected in 2009, and became Vice-Chairman of the newly founded ECR.