World IN BRIEF : CZECHOSLOVAKIA : Communists Gain in Mayors’ Races

Communists who were swept from federal power a year ago rebounded in Slovakian municipal elections to win more mayoral races than any other party. However, President Vaclav Havel’s Civic Forum party took nearly 30% of the council races in the northern Czech republic, where Communists placed third. In Slovakia, Communist candidates won 660, or 23%, of the 2,840 contests for mayor’s seats, the Slovak Electoral Commission said. The Slovak National Party, which supports a separate Slovak state, won only 43 seats, or 1.5% of the races in what was considered a test of separatist sentiment in the republic.