Following vote counts from 98.67% of polling stations, Hungary’s Tisza party has taken the lead over Viktor Orbán’s Fidesz in parliamentary elections.
Vote Count and Parliamentary Composition
After tallying votes from 98.67% of polling stations, the Hungarian parliament is projected to have 138 seats for Tisza and 54 for Fidesz. The far-right Mi Hazánk party is expected to secure seven seats.
Election Day and Turnout
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. This surpasses the 69.59% final turnout in the 2022 elections.
Electoral System
Hungarians elected 199 deputies to the National Assembly, a unicameral parliament. 106 are elected in single-member districts, while the remaining 93 are chosen from national party lists. The candidate with the most votes wins each district, even without a majority.
Voting Process
Eligible Hungarian citizens voting domestically were entitled to two votes: one for a candidate in their district and another for a party or national minority list. Voters abroad cast a single vote for a national list.
Thresholds for Representation and Vote Allocation
Hungary has a 5% threshold for political parties, 10% for two-party coalitions, and 15% for 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 in the election, with the outcome largely determined by the competition between the Fidesz-KDNP coalition led by Viktor Orbán and the Tisza party led by Péter Magyar.
Partial Results and Foreign Vote Counting
Vote counting began immediately after 7:00 PM. No exit polls were conducted within the country.
Foreign Vote Processing and Potential Delays
Ballots from abroad must arrive by Thursday and be counted by April 18th. A close race between the leading lists could delay the final result until Saturday. This year saw a record number of registered voters abroad – over 90,000 – and a record number of postal votes – nearly 224,000, according to NVI data.
Evening Events and Candidate Statements
Both Orbán and Magyar will await results in Budapest. Orbán and Fidesz are hosting an election night event at the Balna complex on the Danube, while Magyar and Tisza members will gather at Batthyány Square, opposite the Hungarian Parliament building.
Orbán’s Pledge to Respect Election Outcome
After casting his vote in Budapest, Prime Minister Viktor Orbán stated he would respect the election result and congratulate the winner if the opposition prevails, emphasizing that “the people’s decision must be respected,” but also asserting his intention to win.
Magyar’s Confidence and Acceptance Conditions
Tisza leader Péter Magyar stated after voting that “no one seriously believes that Tisza will not win the election.” He added that the question is whether the party will achieve a simple or two-thirds majority, necessary for constitutional changes, and that he will accept the results if no fraud significantly impacts the outcome.
Profiles: Orbán and Magyar
Viktor Orbán, co-founder and leader of Fidesz, has governed Hungary continuously since 2010. He began his political career in 1989 by calling for the departure of Soviet troops. Since returning to power 16 years ago, he has transformed into an outspoken opponent of liberal democracy, altering the constitution and strengthening government control over the media and judiciary. Under his leadership, Hungary has been identified by Transparency International as the most corrupt country in the European Union.
Magyar’s Rise and Challenge to Orbán
His rival, 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 wider recognition in 2024 when President Katalin Novák pardoned a person convicted of covering up pedophilia. Following public outrage, Magyar criticized the corruption of Orbán’s power system in a YouTube video, leading to his departure from Fidesz. The video reached millions of viewers – approximately 10% of the Hungarian population – and Magyar subsequently organized large-scale protests and became the leader of the Respect and Freedom Party (Tisza), achieving the second-best result in the 2024 European Parliament elections.