Orban Challenger Magyar’s Party Takes Double-Digit Poll Lead
(Bloomberg) -- Support for Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban’s ruling party is eroding further against a group established by his main challenger Peter Magyar, an opinion poll showed.
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Magyar’s Tisza Party has the backing of 47% of decided voters, with Orban’s Fidesz sliding to 36%, according to the survey by Median and published by the HVG news website Thursday.
It’s the first poll to show Tisza with a double-digit lead over the ruling party, with more than a year before Hungary holds a parliamentary election. Magyar’s faction would be on course to secure a majority of seats in parliament, unseating long-dominant Fidesz, HVG said.
Fidesz’s fading support has stoked concern among investors that Orban may put budget targets at risk.
Magyar, a former ruling-party insider, has managed to place Orban under pressure with criticism of widespread corruption and highlighted neglected hospitals, rail networks and schools. Orban has begun to respond to Magyar’s challenge more directly, but his room for maneuver is curtailed by an economy in recession and a forint trading at a two-year low.
The poll signals that Magyar’s popularity has withstood the powerful media apparatus backing the five-term premier, which has unleashed a barrage of attacks on the rising political force.
Among eligible voters, Tisza led by 34% against 27% for Orban’s Fidesz, HVG said. The Nov. 20-26 survey polled 1,200 people, with a margin of error of 3%.
(Updates with investor concern, Magyar detail from fourth paragraph.)
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