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Three-in-Five Side with Fidesz in Hungary
(Angus Reid Global Monitor) - Hungary’s main opposition party has lost public support but remains a strong leader, according to a poll by Median. 61 per cent of decided voters would support the Hungarian Citizens Party (Fidesz) in the next general election, down six points since March.
The governing Hungarian Socialist Party (MSZP) is second with 28 per cent, followed by the Hungarian Democratic Forum (MDF) with four per cent, and the Alliance of Free Democrats (SZDSZ) with three per cent.
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.
Since mid-2007, Fidesz leader Orban has repeatedly called for an early legislative election. In April 2008, the SZDSZ abandoned the governing coalition citing "irreconcilable differences" with the Socialists on economic policies.
On Jun. 13, Orban renewed calls for a snap election, saying that an "incompetent minority government" is not capable of dealing with rising energy and food prices.
Polling Data
If an election were held today, what party would you support?
(Decided Voters)
|
Jun. 2008 |
Mar. 2008 |
Jan. 2008 |
|
|
Hungarian Citizens Party (Fidesz) |
61% |
67% |
64% |
|
Hungarian Socialist Party (MSZP) |
28% |
24% |
25% |
|
Hungarian Democratic Forum (MDF) |
4% |
2% |
3% |
|
Alliance of Free Democrats (SZDSZ) |
3% |
3% |
4% |
Source: Median
Methodology: Interviews with 1,200 Hungarian adults, conducted from Jun. 6 to Jun. 10, 2008. Margin of error is 3 per cent.