Barring some last-minute surprise, in just over a month’s time the two-decade-long Liberal “lock” on the Budapest mayor’s office will end with the election of the nominally independent but Fidesz-backed István Tarlós. Indeed, so expected is Tarlós’s victory that a bigger story seems to be the fate of the party’s other big name in Budapest, District V mayor Antal Rogán, who recently announced that he would run for reelection of the central Pest neighborhood rather than aim for becoming deputy mayor of the entire city.
Rogán, who is widely believed to have been “exiled” to his current post after overseeing Fidesz’s failed 2006 national election campaign, had apparently wanted to move up to the Number 2 post in the city. But according to origo.hu, others in Fidesz didn’t like the idea of him trying to hold both posts, and Tarlós has other underlings in mind. (Népszabadság says Tarlós’ deputies will be István György, Imre Pesti, Gábor Bagdy and Miklós Csomós.)
Intriguingly, Népszabadság claims that Rogán is keeping his powder dry in anticipation of a run for the mayor’s office in 2014. This suggests that Fidesz may consider Tarlós a transitional figure, or some sort of Trojan Horse capable of appealing to local voters who may otherwise balk at someone more closely allied with the national party.
All of this also suggests that the gilded cage Rogán was exiled to after the debacle of 2006 has turned out to be rather golden indeed. Given the lack of press freedom in Hungary we can’t go into specifics, but let’s just say that they don’t call District V the “central business district” for nothing.
