He said DK regretted that Botka “was unable to adjust his strategy” when he saw he was failing to achieve his goals. DK has tried to talk with Botka several times, Gréczy said, and cited Ujhelyi as saying that the “disagreement with DK was not at the root of the problems”. DK will not appoint a PM candidate, Gréczy said, adding that the party’s list will be headed by leader Ferenc Gyurcsány.

Green LMP said in a statement that it respected Botka’s resignation as an internal affair. It added that the party would continue to fight against the Orbán government and fight for social justice while striving to represent those who have lost faith following Botka’s resignation. The leader of the Hungarian Liberal Party, which had recently entered into an election pact with the Socialists, said he regretted Botka’s resignation, since he had been a candidate not only of the Socialists but the democratic opposition overall. Gábor Fodor said the liberals continued to stand ready for talks on cooperating with the Socialists, adding that it was up to the Socialists.

Dialogue co-chair Gergely Karácsony said Botka’s resignation was a loss but also an opportunity for the opposition to start talks concerning individual candidates. Dialogue still believes that it is possible to replace the government, he said, and is open to talks with all opposition parties in order to select just one opposition candidate for each of the 106 constituencies to compete against Fidesz, he added. Együtt said it acknowledged Botka’s withdrawal but continued to have trust in cooperation with LMP, Momentum and Dialogue in order to ensure that a single candidate of the democratic opposition competes in every constituency.

Republished with permission of Hungary Matters, MTI’s daily newsletter.