ABSTRACT
During the COVID-19 pandemic, the political populism of the government in the Czech Republic led to poor crisis management and contributed to growing distrust of the government by citizens. The country was not prepared for the pandemic, with the government not taking the risks of the pandemic seriously from the beginning. The population first responded positively to the situation, rallying around the flag and demonstrating community solidarity such as sewing face masks to make up for a shortfall of personal protective equipment (PPE). The policy steps by the government were, however, generally irresponsible, chaotic and erratic, characterised by attempts to gain legitimacy and popular support by politicising expertise. Eventually, the population, worn down by the disease and its growing death toll, and by the government’s erratic handling of the pandemic, lost trust in the government’s ability to manage the COVID-19 crisis.
