Although opposition mayors have led 14 Budapest districts since 2019, by the end of the term only one momentary one remained among them. With the disintegration of the opposition alliance, the question of who holds these seemingly secure political positions has increased. If it is up to Gyurcsányé, then Tamás Soproni will represent Momentum alone in the Capital Assembly after 2024. Now, with Anna Donáth at the helm, Momentum is working to get at least one more mayor in Budapest.
- "The mayor of the future" - this is what I thought of Gábor Havasi, the momentous candidate for mayor of Budafok-Tétény, when we talked at the Nagytétény revolutionary picnic on March 15 - Anna Donáth posted on her social media page a few days ago. Momentum's member of the European Parliament and official "face" started campaigning alongside his party's 22nd district mayoral candidate. If it depends on Ferenc Gyurcsány's organization in Budapest, then Havasi will only be the mayor of the very distant future, since at the same time the DK announced that it will run for Zoltán Perlai in the 22nd district in 2024.
According to Anna Donáth, without a clear vision of the future, there is no chance of being authorized to lead a district, a city or a country. It was probably due to this
In 2019, Gábor Havasi lost to Ferenc Karsay of Fidesz-KDNP in the mayoral election.
However, four years ago, Havasi was able to try as the only challenger, all left-wing parties lined up behind him, and the Mi Hazánk Mozgalom did not launch a separate candidate in the South Buda district.
Source: Momentum trusts Gábor Havasi. Photo: Anna Donáth / Facebook
This was probably one of the arguments of the Gyurcsánys when they applied for the district. According to Magyar Nemzet's previous reports, if the DK accepts Gergely Karácsony's offer, which says that the 14 opposition mayors who won in 2019 will run again in the districts they control, with the support of the entire left, under the colors of a civil umbrella organization; even then, they will try to nominate a "disproportionate number" of DK candidates in the current government-led districts.
This also makes Momentum's job more difficult. In 2019, the anti-Olympic party achieved a result of over five percent in an election for the first time, when they broke through the glass ceiling above them during the European Parliament vote in May and sent two representatives to Brussels.
In this election, the DK also gained the position of the largest opposition party, and it was then that Klára Dobrev was nominated for the first time, with whom they strengthened their EU representation with four representatives.
Half a year after the 2019 EP result, which was hopeful for Momentum, they were able to appoint mayors in three districts of Budapest, who were also supported by the entire left-wing coalition. Tibor Déri is the IV. district, and Tamás Soproni won in the VI., only Gábor Havasi was not successful. During the term, Déri then switched to the DK's capital faction, and also announced that he would not run again in 2024, instead recommending his DK deputy mayor, Norbert Trippon, as the head of the district. Tamás Soproni, who remained standing as the only momentary district mayor, seems to have no hope that at least one more of his party colleagues will enter the Metropolitan Assembly as mayor from 2024. It seems that if he cannot persuade the DK to back down, Gábor Havasi will be forced to continue working for the capital as a health advisor. Of course, this would also require Gergely Karácsony to be able to shake things up again.
Source: Hungarian Nation
Featured Image: Facebook/MN
