Ferenc Gyurcsány

Ferenc Gyurcsány (Hungarian: [ˈfɛrɛnt͡s ˈɟurt͡ʃaːɲ] ^ⓘ; born 4 June 1961) is a Hungarian entrepreneur and politician who served as Prime Minister of Hungary from 2004 to 2009. Prior to that, he held the position of Minister of Youth Affairs and Sports between 2003 and 2004.

He was nominated as prime minister by the Hungarian Socialist Party (MSZP) on 25 August 2004, after Péter Medgyessy resigned due to a conflict with the Socialist Party's coalition partner. Gyurcsány was elected Prime Minister on 29 September 2004 in a parliamentary vote (197 yes votes, 12 no votes, with most of the opposition in Parliament not voting). He led his coalition to victory in the 2006 parliamentary election, securing another term as prime minister. His legitimacy was permanently questioned by opposition parties based on his withholding of information about the actual budget deficit in his 2006 re-election campaign. He was also criticised for using derogatory terms for his own country in his speech in Balatonőszöd. After that speech became public, demonstrations started on the streets of Budapest where many people were injured, both demonstrators and policemen.

On 24 February 2007, he was elected as the leader of the MSZP, taking 89% of the vote. On 21 March 2009, Gyurcsány announced his intention to resign as prime minister. He stated that he was a hindrance to further economic and social reforms. President László Sólyom stated that instead of a short-term transactional government ruling only until the 2010 elections, early elections should be held. On 28 March 2009 Gyurcsány resigned from his position as party chairman. A minister under Gyurcsány, Gordon Bajnai, became the nominee of MSZP for the post of prime minister in March 2009 and he became Prime Minister on 14 April.

In October 2011, Gyurcsány and other party members quit the MSZP to establish the Democratic Coalition (DK) under his leadership.