Steven N.
On Sunday, the opposition’s prime ministerial nominee, Péter Márki-Zay, called for a debate with Prime Minister Viktor Orbán before the April 3 elections. As the opposition leader wrote on Facebook:
Whether pro-government or opposition voters, people deserve to be able to listen to whoever wants to be Hungary’s prime minister for the next four years, which is why I have invited Viktor Orbán to a debate.
A swift response came from Fidesz-KDNP Communications Director István Hollik (pictured) the next day, who dismissed the request in a brief post:
Everyone knows that the boss on the left is Ferenc Gyurcsány. And there is no point in arguing with a subordinate.
There has been no prime ministerial debate at election season in Hungary since 2006, when Viktor Orbán and Ferenc Gyurcsány faced off against each other. Viktor Orbán has rejected all such attempts to debate him since then, which HVG attributes to the common perception that the current prime minister did not win the 2006 debate or the 2002 debate against Péter Medgyessy. [HVG]
