He served three times as Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of the Interior of the Slovak Republic. He also acted as Chair of the Parliamentary Committee on Defence and Security, Chair of the Special Parliamentary Committee on the Control of the Slovak Information Service, and Chair of the Special Parliamentary Committee on the Control of the National Security Office. In the years 2002, 2006, 2010 and 2012, he was a member of the Permanent Delegation of the Slovak Parliament to the NATO Parliamentary Assembly (NPA).

The Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Defence of the Slovak Republic has a legal education background. From 1989 to 1995, he studied law at the Faculty of Law, Comenius University in Bratislava. Before becoming involved in politics, he practised law in the private sector. He is one of the founding members of the SMER - sociálna demokracia party. Since its foundation, he has held different positions in the party.