DK is preparing a long-term strategy for 2026, taking advantage of the fact that Péter Magyar is busy with his own scandals.
Showcasing power, fighting for dominance, and fighting for a strong bargaining position are behind the fact that DK is already presenting its representative candidates a year and a half before the 2026 elections. Analyst Ervin Nagy drew attention to the fact that, despite appearances, DK is not competing with Fidesz, but with Tisza, taking advantage of the fact that Péter Magyar is busy with his own scandals.
With a long-term strategy, the Democratic Coalition wants to remain the leading force of the left again, as indicated by the fact that the party started to present its candidates surprisingly early, already a year and a half before the 2026 parliamentary elections. Aspirants are constantly appearing on the party's own website and social media pages, ten candidates have been announced so far. The party aims to nominate its own individual representative candidate in all 106 constituencies,
namely, so that "the people living in each electoral district have the opportunity to vote for left-wing candidates, because we believe that a significant part of the electorate does not support right-wing opposition parties." –
These Hungarian people do not agree with the Christian, conservative or even extreme values represented by the right-wing parties - such as Fidesz, Tisza, Jobbik or Mi Hazánk - read on the website, where - despite the last left-wing coalition, after the failed election - they argue again that Viktor Orbán cannot be defeated in 2026 without the candidates of the left.
– From the above, it can be seen that DK is approaching the 2026 election with a long-term strategy. On the one hand, they try to continue to dominate the left, because
despite the controversial, manipulatively prepared and therefore uncertain public opinion polls, we can say that the majority of left-wing, not right-wing, voters turned to the Tisza Party
- said Ervin Nagy to our newspaper, according to whom DK is therefore trying to show itself as the dominant party of the left, at least at the level of political communication. According to the analyst, the other part of the strategy is that
in DK, they are already preparing for the 2026 negotiations and the conclusion of possible collaborations.
- It is still very uncertain who will be involved in the cooperation, but the DK is preparing in such a way that some kind of agreement must be concluded with all opposition forces, even with the Tisza, even if it is not such a strong alliance, but some kind of coordinated cooperation will be necessary - he opined the analyst.
He emphasized that it is a good strategy in such a bargaining process for the DK to present its 106 individual representative candidates by 2026. – This is a message to the Tisza that we are not scared, we are here, and if we have to negotiate, we already have people we know. But it's also a message to the small parties, the MSZP and Párbeszéd, by presenting them with ready facts, they may even completely suppress them if they wish, said Ervin Nagy.
In response to the suggestion that DK consistently refers to Tisza as a right-wing party, the analyst said,
how DK defines Péter Magyar and his party is misleading, because they are much closer to each other in terms of political program and political goals.
"Standing for Ukraine, pro-war, joining the European Prosecutor's Office, the EU minimum wage, these are present in both parties," he listed.
But - as he said - there is another reason why the Gyurcsánys consistently place Tisza on the right, because the DK perceives that their voters have been seduced by Péter Magyar. - Péter Magyar's political character is now very much damaged, and as a result the situation of the Tisza is also shaken, and in this situation the DK is trying to show what it is better at, which is organization and embeddedness - said Ervin Nagy, adding,
The Péter Magyars are short of resources, the application is just to cover up the fact that they don't have people, they wouldn't be able to put up a candidate in 106 places.
According to the analyst, Tisza is waiting now against DK, as they have other problems as well. - The Gyurcsánys are at an advantage, as the party has also stalled in organizational building due to Magyar's scandals. Magyar is now traveling the country to rebuild himself and to convince the community that has lost trust, but it is unlikely that the president of Tisza will realize that he made a mistake in an honest conversation, he believed.
He also emphasized
the DK competes not with Fidesz but with Tisza with its long-term strategy, despite the fact that they say that they want to defeat the government.
– In addition, there is pressure from the West on the part of the Union, where they want to achieve the same thing as what was achieved in Poland, i.e. for the center-right to unite with the left and thus defeat the Orbán government. This will put pressure on both parties when they negotiate with each other, said Ervin Nagy.
Featured image: Vice President László Varju, Party President Ferenc Gyurcsány and his wife, Member of the European Parliament Klára Dobrev (bj) at the birthday event of the Democratic Coalition (DK) in Budapest on October 22, 2023. The DK was founded in 2010 as one of the platforms of the MSZP, and its transformation into an independent party was announced by Ferenc Gyurcsány at the party's one-year celebration on October 22, 2011. MTI/Robert Hegedüs
