Liberals support Karacsony for Budapest mayor

Hungary's Liberal Party on Thursday announced that it would support Gergely Karacsony, the joint Budapest mayoral candidate of the Socialist, Parbeszed and Democratic Coalition (DK) parties, in the municipal election scheduled for October 13. "Apart from Karacsony, merely pro-Fidesz candidates have remained in contention for the post," Adam Sermer, the liberals' former candidate, told a press conference in front of the Parliament. Karacsony said that the "diverse camp of those wanting change in Budapest" has now become "complete and even more colourful". Incumbent Budapest mayor Istvan Tarlos told MTI that Sermer's resignation had not come as a surprise and neither had the fact that the Liberals were now supporting Karacsony. Tarlos took Karacsony to task for accepting the Liberal party's demand for drug liberalisation.