Gyurcsany: Opposition coalition now ‘more important than DK’

Going forward, DK will put the success of the coalition first, Gyurcsany said, adding that the opposition cooperation would have to involve a series of compromises.

Referring to the opposition primary election, he said that while some parties were particularly strong in the countryside while others did better in major cities and the capital, DK was the only party that was strong across the whole country.

Gyurcsany said DK had been urging the opposition parties to join forces against the government since its founding. “Having the opposition on the same side is one of the greatest gifts, not just for DK, but for democratic Hungary, for those in favour of the republic, and for Europeans,” he said. Gyurcsany added that DK being “the strongest party on this side” did not mean it had more rights than the other parties, just a bigger responsibility.

He said that back when DK was a smaller party it had been easier “to have one voice”. “But now that there are roughly a million people around us, it is only natural that that voice is more diverse, although as I’ve heard it sounds really unpleasant to some people,” he added. However, those who do not understand that such a large community can only be kept together through tolerance “won’t be able to lead . the country”, he said.

Gyurcsany said every party within the “patriotic” united opposition had the same goal, adding at the same time that there was more than one way to reach that goal. He said he wanted his party to encourage others to offer alternative ways to win next year’s election.

If the united opposition wins the election, there will be at least six ruling parties with a group in parliament, Gyurcsany said, adding that Peter Marki-Zay, the opposition’s prime ministerial candidate, may also have a parliamentary group of his own. “All of these parliamentary groups will be serving the prime minister,” he said. “We’re building a coalition of cooperation, not a coalition of blackmail.”

“We’re not going to parliament to obstruct the government but to be a part of the majority behind the government,” Gyurcsany said. “A united and strong opposition will become a strong government and that government to be headed by Peter Marki-Zay will be backed by a united and strong parliamentary majority.”