By the time the news broke on Friday that Klára Dobrev will face a single challenger, namely Péter Márki-Zay, in the second round of the primaries to choose the opposition prime ministerial candidate in next year’s elections, the weeklies were already on the newsstands. They could therefore not react to Gergely Karácsony’s withdrawal from the race, but most did comment on Márki–Zay’s surprisingly successful performance. READ MORE
A pro-government daily reads Gergely Karácsony’s decision to withdraw from the opposition primary as proof that he is a failed politician. A left-wing analyst lambasts him for releasing a string of contradictory statements. READ MORE
As the two mayors decide to run separately in the opposition primary run-off, a liberal commentator cautiously suggests that DK candidate Klára Dobrev might be the most promising opposition candidate for Prime Minister. READ MORE
Jobbik’s founder and former leader – now a political analyst – suggests that since the two mayors cannot run together for the title of opposition prime ministerial candidate in next year’s election, Márki-Zay should withdraw his nomination to let Karácsony win the opposition primary. READ MORE
A left-wing pundit is saddened by the accusations hurled at each other by the two sides, as the runner-up and the number three stand together to challenge the winner of the first round. READ MORE
As DK luminaries and Jobbik’s leader accuse the mayors of Budapest and Hódmezővásárhely of plotting to reverse the result of the first round of the opposition primary, a left-wing analyst points out that pacts are normal in a two-round election. A former pro-Jobbik commentator condemns Jobbik for allying itself with Ferenc Gyurcsány’s party. READ MORE
Commentators across the political spectrum wonder whether, if they win the election next April, the opposition could or would revoke the Fundamental Law – even in the absence of the required two-thirds majority in Parliament. READ MORE
A left-liberal author ponders Klára Dobrev’s chances of winning the second round of the opposition primaries, and then of a Dobrev-led opposition defeating Fidesz in April 2022. A pro-government columnist believes that the primary has helped to entrench Ferenc Gyurcsány’s alleged control of the Left. READ MORE
A pro-government commentator accuses the opposition of using both the planned athletics event and the Fudan campus as political tools. A left-wing pundit thinks that the government will go ahead with the Chinese university project anyway – despite the conditional veto cast by the Budapest Assembly. READ MORE