Kocsis-Cake takes over Karácsony’s parliament seat

Parbeszed party executive Olivio Kocsis-Cake is to take over Gergely Karácsony’s parliamentary mandate, as the party co-leader wants to focus on the upcoming local election and his work as the mayor of Budapest’s district 14, leaders of the party told a press conference held after the party assembly on Sunday.

Karácsony said that the assembly focused on two issues, a strategic discussion on the party’s further plans in light of April’s general election and the reassignment of his mandate. The assembly has reached no decision in the former but they stick to their original goals, he said.

Leftist politics in Hungary should be renewed and alliances forged to topple the Orbán government, he said.

Kocsis-Cake said that he is looking forward to working in parliament and wants to put Párbeszéd’s innovative proposals into practice. Equality, social issues, EU affairs and policies regarding ethnic Hungarians will also be on his agenda, he said.

“I see Párbeszéd as a catalyst of an opposition cooperation capable of toppling the government in 2022. I want to work on that,” he said.

Party co-leader Tímea Szabó said that the party is working on creating social democracy in parliament. They want to show a leftist alternative that “can free people from oppression”, she said. “We have no interest in creating divides, in discrimination or hate-mongering. We want solidarity, cooperation and to work together,” she said.