In Slovenia, Robert Golob’s centre-left Freedom Movement won national elections in March 2026 after introducing the so-called ‘Šutar law‘, which permits warrantless home entry in designated areas, expanded policing powers, and effectively treated Slovenia’s approximately 12,000 Roma citizens as a collective security problem.
The law was adopted in 12 days and passed before the investigation into the crime that prompted it was complete. The main suspect, a Roma man, was later released.
Amnesty International condemned the law, warning that the vitriolic rhetoric used to justify it raised serious fears that the measures would be deployed arbitrarily against the Roma population. The Council of Europe, the European Parliament, and leading Roma organisations raised similar concerns, to no effect.
Golob won the election — but with just 28.6 percent of the vote, barely ahead of Janez Janša’s far-right Slovenian Democratic Party on 27.9 per cent. In 2022, he won by more than 34 per cent. Golob was ultimately unable to cobble together a majority coalition, paving the way for Janša to secure a term as prime minster with the support of several right-wing and centre-right groups (including New Slovenia, Democrats, the Slovenian People’s Party, and Focus).
