(Angus Reid Global Monitor) – The opposition Hungarian Citizens Party (Fidesz) remains highly popular in the country, according to a poll by Tarki. 62 per cent of respondents, all decided voters, would support Fidesz in the next legislative election, down two points since February.
(Angus Reid Global Monitor) – The opposition Hungarian Citizens Party (Fidesz) remains highly popular in the country, according to a poll by Tarki. 62 per cent of respondents, all decided voters, would support Fidesz in the next legislative election, down two points since February.
The governing Hungarian Socialist Party (MSZP) is a distant second with 23 per cent, down two points. Support is lower for the Movement for a Better Hungary (Jobbik), the Hungarian Democratic Forum (MDF), and the Alliance of Free Democrats (SZDSZ).
Hungarian voters renewed their National Assembly in April 2006. The MSZP and the SZDSZ secured 210 of the legislative branch’s 386 seats, securing a full term for Socialist prime minister Ferenc Gyurcsany. Fidesz, led by Viktor Orban, elected 164 lawmakers. In June 2006, Gyurcsany introduced a fiscal "austerity package" of state subsidy reductions and tax increases, aimed at lowering the country’s fiscal deficit.
In September 2006, Gyurcsany was criticized after Hungary’s state radio aired portions of an audiotape—which had been recorded in May—in which he told members of the MSZP that his administration "lied throughout the past one and a half or two years" about the state of the country’s economy in order to win re-election. The prime minister’s words sparked a two-week riot that threatened to end his government.
On Mar. 21, Gyurcsany stepped down as prime minister, as he faced mounting criticism over his handling of the economy. He declared: "I’m being told that I myself am the obstacle to the cooperation and stable government majority needed to implement changes. (…) If this is so, I will eliminate this obstacle."
Gyurcsany was re-elected as leader of his party, which gave him a say on who would supplant him as prime minister. The MSZP picked finance minister Gordon Bajnai to be the next head of government. Bajnai and the cabinet face a no-confidence vote on Apr. 14. A defeat could trigger an early election.
Polling Data
Which party would you vote for in the next legislative election? (Decided Voters)
|
|
Mar. 2009 |
Feb. 2009 |
Jan. 2009 |
|
Hungarian Citizens Party (Fidesz) |
62% |
64% |
61% |
|
Hungarian Socialist Party (MSZP) |
23% |
21% |
30% |
|
Movement for a Better Hungary (Jobbik) |
4% |
3% |
1% |
|
Hungarian Democratic Forum (MDF) |
3% |
2% |
2% |
|
Alliance of Free Democrats (SZDSZ) |
3% |
2% |
2% |
Source: Tarki
Methodology: Telephone interviews with 1,000 Hungarian voters, conducted from Mar. 12 to Mar. 25, 2009. Margin of error is 3.1 per cent.
