Preliminary results from Hungary’s parliamentary elections indicate a close contest between the ruling Fidesz-KDNP coalition and the opposition Tisza party.
Partial Results and Voter Turnout
After the count of 15% of votes, the opposition Tisza party received 47.8% of the vote, while the Fidesz-KDNP coalition garnered 43.6%, according to the National Election Office (NVI).
Polling stations closed at 7:00 PM on Sunday, with those already in line permitted to cast their ballots. A record turnout was observed, with 77.8% of eligible voters participating by 6:30 PM, compared to 69.59% in the 2022 elections.
Electoral System
Hungarians elected 199 members to the National Assembly, a unicameral parliament. 106 are elected in single-member districts, and 93 are chosen from national party lists. The candidate with the most votes wins each district, even without a majority.
Vote Breakdown and Thresholds
Eligible voters within Hungary cast two votes: one for a candidate in their district and another for a party list or national minority list. Voters abroad cast a single vote for a national list.
A 5% threshold applies to political parties, 10% to two-party coalitions, and 15% to lists of three or more parties. The D’Hondt method is used to allocate seats from party lists. Five party lists and 12 Hungarian minority lists were registered to participate.
Counting and Final Results
Vote counting began immediately after 7:00 PM. No exit polls were conducted within the country.
Ballots from abroad must arrive by Thursday and be counted by April 18th. Due to the close race, the final results may not be known until Saturday. A record number of voters—over 90,000—registered to vote at foreign representations, and nearly 224,000 voted by mail.
Candidates’ Reactions
Both Prime Minister Viktor Orbán and Péter Magyar will await the results in Budapest. Orbán and Fidesz are holding their election night event at the Balna complex on the Danube, while Magyar and Tisza members are gathering at Batthyány Square, opposite the Hungarian Parliament.
Orbán stated he would respect the outcome if the opposition wins, adding, “The people’s decision must be respected,” but also affirmed his intention to win. Magyar expressed confidence in Tisza’s victory, questioning whether they would achieve a two-thirds majority needed for constitutional changes, and stating he would accept the results if no fraud occurred.
Profiles of the Leaders
Viktor Orbán, co-founder and leader of Fidesz, has governed Hungary continuously since 2010. He began his political career in 1989 calling for the departure of Soviet troops and has since transformed into a vocal opponent of liberal democracy, altering the constitution and increasing government control over media and the judiciary. His government has been identified by Transparency International as the most corrupt in the European Union.
His challenger, Péter Magyar, is a former member of Fidesz who previously worked in the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Hungary’s permanent representation to the EU. He gained prominence in 2024 after criticizing the corruption within Orbán’s system following President Katalin Novák’s pardon of a convicted pedophile accomplice. His YouTube address criticizing the system garnered millions of views and led to the formation of the Tisza party, which achieved significant results in the 2024 European Parliament elections.
