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
A moderate legal analyst opposes a bill tabled by four pro-government MPs with the intention of deterring potential copy-cat stunts based on the ill-famed forged electoral video from Baja. READ MORE
A pro-government daily suggests that the latest election result offers few clues about the real chances of the parties in 2014. but does provide an early indication of just how ugly the campaign might get; the author warns all contenders to moderate their tone. READ MORE
A left-wing commentator accuses Fidesz of suspecting an opposition conspiracy behind all unpleasant surprises including the Tavares report, and suggests that such ‘paranoid propaganda’ should help opposition forces unite. READ MORE
A leading pro-government columnist urges the ruling party to admit its guilt in breaking campaign rules during the Baja local by-election, as nothing is more important for a party than being trustworthy. READ MORE
A conservative columnist accuses the left of radicalism, after Together 2014 leader Gordon Bajnai urged PM Orbán to step down and disappear from public life. Centrist pundits find Mr Bajnai’s performance pathetic, while the leading left-wing daily regrets the lack of a meaningful dialogue between the right and the left. READ MORE
A left-wing columnist says the opposition only lost by a hairsbreadth and the result showed LMP’s contribution is indispensable to beat Orbán in 2014. He reiterates opposition claims of irregularities during the election. A pro-government pundit, on the other hand, finds the Baja election is proof that whatever the opposition tries, they are bound to lose. READ MORE
A conservative blogger claims that Orbán could be “Hungary’s Merkel” if he could only show restraint and fashion his party as a “force for stability”. READ MORE
A popular analyst suggests that the campaign around utility tariff cuts may well guarantee PM Orbán’s victory in next year’s elections. READ MORE
Commenting on the government’s plan to transform the energy and utility providers into non-profit services, a left-wing and a centrist columnist accuse the government of welfare populism. A right-wing pundit, on the other hand, believes that the Socialists want to increase their popularity by creating a fully welfare dependent constituency. READ MORE