Survey: PM Orbán’s party losing support – UPDATED
The Hungarian prime minister and his Fidesz party won the fourth consecutive supermajority in 2022 in the general elections. However, it seems the popular support towards the governing alliance is withering away as a consequence of the worsening economic crisis.
As we wrote HERE, PM Viktor Orbán plans to remain in power for much longer than he said back in 2018. However, the support behind him is dwindling. He acknowledged that in a keynote speech in Kötcse. Orbán explained that the reason behind his fading popularity is the weakening Hungarian economy since, as he put it, people got used to constant growth.
The Republikon Insitute found that Fidesz’s popularity contracted in the last few months. In August, 42% of the party voters would choose Orbán’s governing party, which is a minus 6% drop. Concerning the population, that rate is minus 4% and 30%. The second biggest political community behind Fidesz’s is the undecided voters with 28%, 24.hu wrote.
The biggest opposition party is Ferenc Gyurcsány’s DK (17 and 12%). Momentum Movement, Mi Hazánk and the Hungarian Two-Tailed Dog Party, Hungary’s mock party, would be present in the parliament, provided the elections were this Sunday. However, LMP, Jobbik, Párbeszéd and the Socialists would lose their parliament seats.
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Nézőpont: Orbán enjoying commanding lead
Ruling Fidesz holds a “commanding” lead over the other parties ahead of the start of the autumn session of parliament, according to a fresh poll released by the Nézőpont Institute on Tuesday. Fidesz’s voters, however, are less committed to the party, Nézőpont told MTI. If elections were held this Sunday, Fidesz would be likely to receive 51 percent of the vote, but around 10 percent of its voters, or 5 percent of the electorate, are not certain that they would choose the ruling party.
Nézőpont pointed out, however, that the “partial uncertainty” among Fidesz voters did not mean that they intended to vote for another party. It also noted that Fidesz still polls over 40 percentage points higher than the strongest opposition party, the Democratic Coalition (DK), which has a backing of 10 percent. The ruling party’s numbers are also close to double the combined support held by the opposition parties that contested the 2022 election together, it added.
Radical party Mi Hazánk is supported by 9 percent of the electorate, while Momentum would receive 8 percent of the vote, as would the satirical Two-Tailed Dog Party. The party of former Jobbik leader Péter Jakab would get 3 percent, and Péter Márki-Zay’s Everyone’s Hungary People’s Party would receive 2 percent of the vote. The Socialist Party and green LMP would also get 2 percent each. Nézőpont’s phone poll was carried out between September 4 and 6 with a sample of 1,000 adults.
Fidesz party MEPs to back EU defence facility
The MEPs of ruling Fidesz are backing the European defence industry reinforcement through common procurement act (EDIRPA), because “strengthening the European defence industry is in our fundamental interest”, the group said in a statement on Monday. The statement published on Monday, after an EP discussion on the report on setting up the facility, said: “The new facility is key to strengthening European defence industry and capacity, weakened by failed leftist-liberal policies, and so our group supports the initiative.”
Group leader Kinga Gál said the Ukrainian war made us realise that strengthening European defence industry and infrastructure was long overdue. It is in Europe’s fundamental interest, she believes. “The European Union can only face escalating security challenges with globally competitive defence and military capabilities,” Gál asserted. The facility will offer an opportunity to improve responsiveness and production capacities through the cooperation of member states, she explained. “All that is key to sustained peace and long-term stability.”
MEP Andras Gyurk said the new facility could create value added when the European defence industry was “brought back on its feet”. “The war in a neighbouring country has shown the strategic failure of the leftist-liberal defence policy aimed at dismantling the defence industry. To ensure the security of EU citizens, the most critical deficiencies of the defence industry should be addressed at lightning speed. That warrants the cooperation of European countries as well as strong national defence industry programmes, and the facility can contribute to that. Besides, the new act may help defence investments in Central Europe and in Hungary,” he said. The EP is scheduled to vote on the report on setting up the EDIRPA on Tuesday.
You know, I could take a survey asking leading questions and have 90 percent of the respondents agreeing with the statement that Donald Trump was the assassin that killed the Kennedys. I could take one and get a majority agreeing that the moon is made from green cheese. I do not trust any surveys that do not divulge the number of people who responded, their general part of the country, and other information that shows that a diverse broad group of respondents participated and samples of the reply’s being available for public inspection. In a country the size of Hungary there should have been at least 20 thousand surveys sent out and the surveys distributed in every county of the country.
The biggest problem in Hungarian politics is the lack of an effective opposition with a strong leader. The opposition is splintered among too many parties and the strongest party among them DK has a leader who so very long ago discredited himself with a recorded speech to party members that hangs as a millstone on his neck. Fidesz has been very effective in continuously slinging mud at Gyurcsany as a confessed liar. No one in Fidesz who are the biggest liars would ever be stupid enough to confess to it. The opposition tried to unite under one party in 2022 but Marki-Zay was bland lacking the ability to rally the public. Most importantly the opposition could not get any message out through the Fidesz controlled media. Marki-Zay had 5 minutes on national television in that election campaign. That in itself tells you democracy is dead in Hungary. If any opposition can gain nationwide support it will have to be through a grassroots campaign literally on the streets 19th century style with leaflets. Even that may be too late because Fidesz will likely make arrangements for a fraudulent vote count. After that you would need something similar to the Orange Revolution in Ukraine in the streets of Hungary sending Viktor Orban into exile in Russia. More likely Orban stays in power until 2034 as he has stated is his intent. Hungarians will become complete outcasts of Europe living miserable lives. The bright side Fidesz will tell you is that they will save you from dreaded “liberalism.”
Let´s test Mr. Gál´s claims of the “strategic failure of the leftist-liberal defense policy aimed at dismantling the defense industry”:
https://www.macrotrends.net/countries/HUN/hungary/military-spending-defense-budget
So: the lowest point of defense spending in Hungary in recorded history was in 2014 (0.86 percent of GDP). Who was in power?
Concur Larry.
The first sentence in your commentary – the INEFFECTIVENESS of Opposition Political Parties in Hungary, that literally DESTROY each other by numbers, not ALLOWING a center nor middle ground in Political Agendas/Policies – which just ERADICATES destroys the word of Opposition.
Numbers – they just Bury, Smother, drown each other out, that “Feeds” a process that Retard’s any possibilities, that disables any opportunities that there / they take the place as a Party – a major VOICE of Opposition.
Hungary wrongfully – the OPPOSING of each other of Political Parties, to many to be ABLE to have STRONG Vibrant Visionary – Political Ideas & Philosophies, but instead we HAVE fragmentation and the opposing of each other, the “ripping each other apart” mentality, that is ALL of a HUMONGOUS negative – rather than a Party – an OPPOSITION Party – that CHALLENGES the Government of the Day under Victor Orban.
Quality over Quantity – that PRODUCE not continue to HINDER any chance of a FUTURE that we as Hungarians are faced with at this time.
I completely agree about the lack of effective opposition in Hungary. I don’t think the problem last time was so much that Marky-Zey didn’t have enough time, more that he didn’t have much worthwhile to say. Also, knowing how they are reported in the hUngarian media, opposition MEPs in Brussels should stop giving the impression that they are always voting “with” the EU and “against” Hungary. A united opposition with a credible leader with a vision for the future that is more than taking orders from Brussels is desperately needed. Perhaps if the toxic Gyürcsányi would accept that his time is up it would help, and they should stop promoting his wife, who has no credibility as an independent political figure.
The American parrots at the US Embassy CIA desk must not have much to do today? Larry, get a real job and stop posting agreeing post yourself.
The problem with defence procurement in the EU is that every country wanted their own factories to promote jobs. You have designs in different EU countries for example for artillery that are not compatible with a common munition as they have different calibres. The other problem is that for too long EU countries downplayed the threat that Russia has been. The Germans thought that if they did more business with Russia the Russians would be peaceful. Clearly that was not the case and instead Putin tried to use EU and specifically German dependency on Russian gas for blackmail. If Fidesz politicians are going say that defence is lacking they need to say lacking against what threat specifically. These con artists will never directly say publicly that Russia is the threat to Hungary and the EU. Russia obviously is the only military threat that Europe faces but Fidesz is in bed with Russia.
Agree with Allan Forrester, in order to give the opposition a chance Gyurcsany and his wife have to completely withdraw from politics. People have long memories and with such media dominance the government is only too happy to keep reminding us of the failings of these two. A fresh dynamic person is needed with no connection to Gyurcsany and his wife, and those two should realise their time is up.