Pavol Minárik

Pavol Minárik (25 June 1957 10 March 2018) was a Slovak politician. From 2002 to 2010 he served as a member of the National Council of Slovakia.

Biography Pavol Minárik was born on 25 June 1957 in Bratislava. He studied systems theory at Comenius University. After graduation he worked as a programmer for the public veterinary authority institution, later in the National Centre for Informatics of Slovakia.

Political career Following the Velvet Revolution and Slovakia's transition to democracy, Minárik entered local politics. He first served as a councilor for the Petržalka borough (1990–1994) before moving to the Bratislava City Council in 1994. During this period, he also held the post of Deputy Mayor of Petržalka. Between 1999 and 2002, he rose to the position of Deputy Mayor of Bratislava. A member of the Christian Democratic Movement (KDH) since 1990, Minárik was appointed the party's Deputy Chairman for Regional Development in 1999. Although the dissenting members initially downplayed the likelihood of a formal party split, on February 21, 2008, Minárik announced his departure from the KDH alongside high-profile colleagues Vladimír Palko, Rudolf Bauer, and František Mikloško. The group cited long-standing ideological disagreements with the party leadership as the primary reason for their exit. Shortly thereafter, they co-founded the Conservative Democrats of Slovakia (KDS). In 2009, Minárik was among KDS candidates running on the Eurosceptic Libertas.eu platform for the 2009 European Parliament election, but failed to win a seat. The following years he lost his National Council seat as KDH did not run in the national election.

Personal life and death Minárik and his wife Mária had a daughter and two sons together.

In late January 2018, Minárik was severely injured and fell into a coma for several weeks after being struck by a car in Petržalka.