Editing Vladimír Mečiar (section)

=== First term ===
After the first democratic elections in Czechoslovakia in June 1990, he was named Slovak prime minister (representing the VPN) of a coalition government of VPN and the [[Christian Democratic Movement]]. He advocated economic reform and continued federation with the Czechs.

In 1990 the political landscape of the [[Czech Republic]] and [[Slovakia]] started to develop and many new political parties were formed, mainly from the Civic Forum and the VPN. By the end of 1990, some of Mečiar's partners in the VPN began distancing themselves from him. First, the party split into two fractions in early March 1991: Mečiar supporters (mostly members of his cabinet) and Mečiar opponents (led by the VPN chairman [[Fedor Gál]]). On 23 April 1991, the Presidium of the Slovak parliament ([[National Council of the Slovak Republic|Slovak National Council]]) deposed him as premier of Slovakia and he was replaced by [[Ján Čarnogurský]], the leader of the Christian Democratic Movement. Three days later, the VPN officially split in two: the [[Movement for a Democratic Slovakia]] (HZDS) and the remaining VPN (since October 1991 called ODÚ-VPN, later just [[Civic Democratic Union (Slovakia)|ODÚ]]). Mečiar was elected HZDS chairman in June 1991.