The main opposition Fidesz party has retained its significant lead over its political rivals in February, the first month of the campaign for the general elections in April, according to a poll Szazadveg released to MTI on Thursday.
Support for centre-right Fidesz stood at 33 percent, unchanged from the previous month, as against 15 percent for the governing Socialists, down one percentage point, said the poll. In this group non-parliamentary radical nationalist Jobbik was preferred by 5 percent, enough for the party to make it into parliament.
Among decided voters who would turn out to vote Fidesz was backed by 58 percent and the Socialists by 23 percent, practically unchanged from the previous month. Jobbik showed itself the third strongest force in this group with an unchanged backing of 10 percent, Szazadveg said. In a change on the previous month the small conservative Hungarian Democratic Forum (MDF) garnered a 5 percent support, needed to get seats in parliament.
MDF, however, received support by only 3 percent among all voters.
Among those polled 37 percent said they preferred to see Fidesz leader Viktor Orban as Hungary’s next prime minister; 13 percent named Attila Mesterhazy, the Socialist candidate, while 12 percent would be happy with MDF’s Lajos Bokros.
The survey was conducted between February 1-6 asking 1,000 voting-age adults.
