The economic and political crisis looms in Central Europe: Mirek Topolanek’s minority right-wing, and Ferenc Gyurcsány’s minority left-wing government failed this week. Although many would prefer a continouity in the government and later elections in both countries, the major opposition parties are eager to regain control of the their respective countries, probably because the deep economic and political crisis offers a chance of real change. It is likely that both countries will have a joint national and EP election campaign.

Macedonians headed to the polls on Sunday to choose the country’s president from seven candidates and 84 mayors from 365 candidates, and members of the local councils. The incumbent president, Branko Crvenkovski did not run for re-election. Gjorgje Ivanov, the candidate of the strongest party in the Macedonian parliament, VMRO-DPMNE, won the first round of the [...]

As expected, the least colorful incumbent president in the Visegrad Group, Ivan Gašparovi? has won the first round of Slovakia’s presidential elections. Iveta Radi?ová, the leading oppositon candiadate has collected enough votes to force him to a run-off.
Gašparovi? was first elected to the presidency in 2004, when he unexpectedly made it to the runoff election [...]

In a little-awaited party conference Mr Gyurcsány, the prime minister of Hungary’s minority Socialist government has offered his resignation in case the five parliamentary parties agree on a new government.

The first time ever an ethnic Serb citizen of Croatia, Aleksandar Jevtic, has received Croatia’s highest award. The ethnic Serb citizen of Croatia has saved the lives of Croatian soldiers during the Croatia’s war of independence, which was in fact, a Serb-Croat war. In the run-up to a summit of the prime ministers of the formerly belligerent parties in the second and third war in the former Yugoslavia have made peaceful gestures.

Montenegro’s official bid for EU membership has overshadowed the small republic’s NATO-integration. The Hungarian military diplomacy has offered mentoring services to Montenegro and will expand the Podgorica mission.
Hungary has just finished a similar mission in Croatia, helping the former Yugoslav republic’s accession into the military alliance. Hungary and Croatia have a very strong relationship in [...]

Even though people are free to choose in a new democracy, it takes many rounds of tit-for-tat between the electorate and the new parties to have reliable and respectable politicians.

After a brief overview of the Hungarian party system, the Socialist and the Liberal candidates, here are the likely winners. The EPP has two member parties in Hungary, and the smaller one just decided (and possibly split) over the issue of its party list.
Hungary’s most popular party is Fidesz-Hungarian Civic Union. Fidesz entered the [...]

The picture on the Liberal political field is as simple as on the Socialist, so this is the second post in a series of the Hungarian MEP candidate lists. The Alliance of Free Democrats (SZDSZ) is a member of the ALDE group in the European Parliament and ELDR - European Liberal Democrats party group. It’s aim is simple: to survive the election and send at least one delegate to the European assembly.

Probably one of the biggest gaffes ever in the Serbian media: the mainstream Serbian daily newspaper, Blic, has accepted a full-page advertisment from the break-away state of Kosovo.