A liberal think tank claims that commercial media decided not to run campaign ads both because this would eat up valuable slots, and because they are afraid of alienating their audience with unsavoury political messages. READ MORE
On the left, Viktor Orbán’s annual Sunday speech is described as “success propaganda” and scaremongering, while pro-government commentators condemn Ferenc Gyurcsány’s Saturday speech as “scandalous” from the man they hold responsible for his country’s demise. READ MORE
Left-wing commentators call on the MSZP to disown its corrupt politicians, after a pro-government daily unveiled a secret bank account with hundreds of millions of undeclared funds possessed by Socialist Vice Chairman Gábor Simon. The leading left-wing daily adds that the scandal further diminishes the chances of the left at the election in April. READ MORE
“The war on utility costs” is featured in two parallel analyses of the upcoming election campaign. A left-leaning commentator notes that Fidesz chose the cut in utility prices as its main theme for the campaign and the now united opposition must convince the electorate that they offer more substantial safety and freedom. A commentator for a pro-government daily notes that negative statements on the utility cost issue will hardly provide enough fuel for the left-wing campaign. Deputy Prime Minister Tibor Navracsics, in his regular column, sums up the dilemma as finding a good policy that is also popular enough to win an election. READ MORE
The date of the election itself has become a campaign topic, with left-wing commentators suspecting that the President’s decision was prompted by political convenience rather than neutral rationality. READ MORE
Liberal columnists are highly sceptical about a new opposition pact which incorporates Ferenc Gyurcsány into Gordon Bajnai and Attila Mesterházy’s alliance. Some blame leading progressive intellectuals for interfering with the political process. In a lone optimistic column, a political analyst linked to the Socialist Party suggests that all is not yet lost.
The leading leftist daily deplores the main players’ reluctance to revise their electoral pact, and hopes that their announcement has not come too late. The main pro-government daily is less charitable and points out that after so much ado, the leading left-wing candidate for the Premier’s post has yet to be picked. READ MORE
In their first post-new-year’s-day analyses of the electoral landscape, most columnists consider Prime Minister Viktor Orbán and his Fidesz party the likely winner of the next elections, although a left-wing commentator suspects that the opposition constituency is underrepresented by the opinion polls. READ MORE
In their traditional New Year columns, left and right-wing dailies alike agree that Fidesz is the probable winner of the next elections, but that prospect does not make them equally happy. READ MORE
The leading left-wing daily writes that although the opposition candidate won the Fót municipal by-election, the turnout indicates a complete loss of voter confidence rather than a victory for the opposition. READ MORE