When it is politics, as if the number of the supporters of the two parties, namely the SMK-MKP and Most-Híd, was exactly the same among ethnic Hungarians in Slovakia; although they consider the SMK-MKP (Party of the Hungarian Community) to be the most sympathetic party, the Most—Híd party is lagging only slightly behind the SMK-MKP. However, there is a wide consensus that the vast majority of the ethnic Hungarians in Slovakia have a broadly negative perception of Robert Fico’s current government (while the Most-Híd is one of the parties in the government coalition).

A comprehensive public opinion poll — with a sample size of 722 participants — conducted by the Focus Agency for the Bratislava-based Új Szó daily newspaper revealed all that. The opinion polling surveyed the Slovakian ethnic Hungarians’ political preferences and interest in politics. The responses of the participants showed that 53% of all respondents were interested in what happens in the political arena.

As 34% of the people polled considered the activities of the government coalition (SMER—SD [Direction—Social Democracy], SNS [Slovak National Party] and Most—Híd) to be very negative, and 37% of them regarded the same to be rather negative. There were a lot of Most—Híd sympathisers among the respondents making a negative judgement, 3% of whom considered Fico’s current government to be very positive, and 36% of them considered it to be rather positive. However, 38% of them perceived the Government rather negatively, and 21% of them very negatively. The level of condemnation of the Government was highest among the SMK-MKP sympathisers; only 8% of them had a slightly positive perception of the Government, and 90% of them completely condemned it.

The SMK-MKP was the most sympathetic party among Hungarians in Slovakia (31.3%), and the Most—Híd ranked second (30.5%). Slovakian parties lagged far behind them; the SMER—SD ranked third (6%), and 3.3% and 3.3% of the respondents considered the SaS (Freedom and Solidarity) and OĽaNO (Ordinary People and Independent Personalities) to be sympathetic. There are still very few ethnic Hungarians who even consider voting for an ethnic Slovak party.

According to Martin Slosiarik, the ethnic Hungarians will continue to vote on ethnic grounds. ‘Ethnic identity is a main factor determining voting intentions,’ he explained, adding that ethnic Hungarian voters primarily prefer parties which can represent the interests of southern regions inhabited by ethnic Hungarians; this is the most important aspect for them. He pointed out based on demographic and social data that the number of SMK-MKP voters is high in Hungarian ethnic bloc, while the number of Most—Híd sympathisers is higher among people living in areas inhabited by a mixed population. 

(Márk Finta, www.ujszo.com, 14 Nov 2017)