Guess who is next?
Sources close to Fidesz have claimed the party leadership spent little time dealing with Ibolya David's eight points, regarding them merely as a basis for negotiation. The Fidesz leadership suggested in a letter to Ibolya David that Akos Bod Peter could be a joint prime ministerial candidate. Bod Peter's task would be to lead the country out of its present situation. Akos Bod Peter was the Antall government's finance minister and president of the National Bank of Hungary.
Political analysts believe Orban is positioning himself for the situation following the elections. He already knows that Fidesz cannot win the second round, and wishes to avoid being a losing candidate.
This would also allow him to drop Mikola, the party's candidate for deputy prime minister, who has become a burden.
If Ibolya David is not prepared to discuss Orban's proposal and Fidesz is obliged to fight the second round alone, then observers believe Orban would still refuse to serve as a candidate and would nominate Mihaly Varga, citing a situation of economic near-crisis as a reason.
Hungarian-romanian relationships
The past few decades have seen increasing numbers of mixed Hungarian-Romanian marriages in Transylvania. These are motivated by more than pure love. The latest research shows that Hungarians are being assimilated into the Romanian community.
Interview with Viktor Orbán
Viktor Orbán would like to see more liberals find a home inside Fidesz, to bring the conflicts - with due respect for differences of opinion - inside the Fidesz camp. In his exclusive interview with HVG.hu, the prime ministerial candidate said he was not trying to weaken the institutions of democracy. On the contrary, he wants closer representation of the people. If Fidesz wins the election, he wants to see Parliament play an important role. He aims for the best possible relationship with the United States, which he sees as the only guarantor of Hungary's security. If the budget runs out of control, he will dock both his and his ministers' pay.
„Orban: Republic is only a garment warn by the nation”
Ideology reared its head in the campaign two weeks before the first round of the election. Where, before, the parties were competing on promises, with republican or national rhetoric only playing a subsidiary role, suddenly the campaign has turned into what can almost be described as a kulturkampf.
Left or right
Today's Fidesz is riding a wave of antipathy felt by the traditional Hungarian Right and the Hungarian provinces towards the emergence of a Western-style middle class, claims the political analyst Péter Tölgyessy. He believes Viktor Orbán lost Wednesday's debate between the two prime ministerial candidates, but performed better than his three rivals on Thursday. Supporters of a western-style middle class lack a major party to represent their interests. Voters should reflect carefully before voting on Sunday, Tölgyessy warned.
How they count?
Every day, polling companies have news about the state of play in the election campaign. Are they biased, and if yes, then which way do these companies lean?
Last before the elections
Ferenc Gyurcsány wants to define the difference between the left and right wings as a contrast between democracy and autocracy. If the 45-year-old socialist politician's party wins the election, he promises to continue by reforming the state bureaucracy, local government and healthcare. If he loses the election, he will turn to the Socialist Party and tell them: "That was all I could do."
