According to the Constitution, Parliament has to elect the successor of President Pál Schmitt within 30 days, but a popular centrist observer thinks we will find out the new candidate within a week. READ MORE
A leading centrist analyst believes that Viktor Orbán has no choice but to use double talk, but advises him to practice this more carefully, while his conservative colleague writes that the EC has over-reacted to the Hungarian PM’s words on March 15th. READ MORE
Liberal commentators are divided over the meaning of a handshake with the leader of Jobbik, and the place of the far right party in the Hungarian political landscape. Most left-leaning intellectuals consider any gesture towards Jobbik unacceptable, while others invoke the fact that Jobbik won a place in Parliament democratically. READ MORE
A centrist analyst believes that Fidesz did not embark on a wholesale overhaul of scores of political institutions in order to put an end to democracy in Hungary, but because the party felt that the institutional environment has always favoured its adversaries. Fidesz decided, therefore, to change that environment. READ MORE
A centrist analyst wonders how Mr Orbán’s government might act in response to the threat of the European Commission to freeze hundreds of millions of Euros in EU subsidies. Gábor Török speculates that it would not be an unreasonable act for Fidesz to call an early election. READ MORE
A pro-government commentator believes that in contrast to the previous Socialist governments, which followed neo-liberal principles and bowed to international investors, PM Orbán’s main aim is to strengthen the Hungarian middle class. According to a centrist analyst, the Socialists will have no option but to try and solicit the support of the working class. READ MORE
A left wing columnist believes LMP has made a moral rather than a political choice. A prestigious political analyst thinks the “outsider attitude” adopted by LMP is the only politically promising approach. READ MORE
Commentators agree that the debate on Hungary in the EP was of a low standard. A pro-government daily praises PM Viktor Orbán’s performance, while a left-wing commentator points out that that all MEPs followed their party lines. A centrist political analyst believes that it is still not certain that a compromise will be reached between the EU and the Hungarian government. READ MORE
Commentators on the left and in the centre of the political spectrum wonder whether President Pál Schmitt can stay in office, after Heti Világgazdaság accused him of plagiarising a significant part of his doctoral dissertation, submitted in 1992. READ MORE
Left and right wing commentators agree that the Hungarian government has no choice but to reach an agreement with the European Union and the International Monetary Fund. While Népszabadság and Népszava urge the cabinet to return to European norms, both Magyar Nemzet and Magyar Hírlap believe that there is no need to crawl on all fours to the lenders. READ MORE