Despite a controversial referendum on same-sex marriage, democracy remains alive and well in Slovakia

Slovakia held a referendum on 7 February aimed at prohibiting same-sex marriage, adoption by same-sex couples, and the right of schools to require children to attend sexual education, or education dealing with the subject of euthanasia. Daniel Kral writes on the impact of the referendum, which saw overwhelming backing for all three proposals, but failed to pass the 50 per cent turnout threshold needed to make the result binding. He argues that despite the controversial nature of the topic, the result illustrates that democracy is still alive and well in the country, and could lead Slovakia in a more socially liberal direction.