Incumbent Budapest mayor István Tarlós is more popular with voters than his two closest opposition challengers combined, the daily Magyar Nemzet said on Friday, citing a fresh poll by the Nézőpont research institute. According to the poll commissioned by the paper, Tarlós has the backing of 51% of decided voters. His main rival, Gergely Karácsony, the joint Budapest mayoral candidate of the leftist opposition parties, is supported by 43% of voters, while Róbert Puzsér, an independent candidate, is backed by 6%.
Fully 62% of respondents said Tarlós had the best chance of securing the most funding for the capital, while just 9% said Karácsony would be more capable. The paper pointed out that 56% of opposition voters said Tarlós could obtain the most funding.
Magyar Nemzet said Karácsony’s aspirations were made more difficult by the fact that the majority – 58% – of respondents believe Budapest’s mayor should be prepared to work together with the government, while only 30% say it is not necessary for the mayor to cooperate with the country’s leaders. Nézőpont said the data indicated that a portion of opposition voters would be willing to cross over to Tarlós. The institute surveyed a representative sample of 500 Budapest voters by phone between August 23 and 27.