Hungarian Elections...[ 893 ]

Hungarians expected to oust Socialists in election

By Krisztina Than and Marton Dunai

Reuters
Sunday, April 11, 2010; 7:26 AM

BUDAPEST (Reuters) - Hungary voted on Sunday in an election that is expected to usher in a center-right Fidesz government promising growth and jobs after eight years of Socialist rule and the country's near financial collapse.

Fidesz, which last ruled between 1998 and 2002, has campaigned on cutting taxes, creating jobs and supporting local businesses to give a boost to Hungary's economy which was pounded by a deep economic recession last year.

The last opinion polls showed Fidesz had a good chance of winning a two-thirds majority in the next parliament, meaning it could push through structural reforms, and that the far-right Jobbik party would get into parliament for the first time.

The Socialist government led by technocrat Gordon Bajnai since April 2009 made painful budget cuts to rein in the deficit under a deal led by the International Monetary Fund, which provided emergency financing for Hungary amid a crisis in 2008.

The budget cuts have helped stabilize Hungary's finances and regain investors' confidence but exacerbated the recession, and opinion polls showed ahead of Sunday's vote that Hungarians were overwhelmingly in favor of a change in government.

"I voted for Fidesz, because to fix the country we need the clearest possible backing for the next government," said Ilona Glazer, 72, after casting her vote in Budapest.

"We need to fix the economy most of all, and health care as well, but there is a lot to make right in people's souls, too. With tasks this big, it's good to have a strong leadership."

But there were voters who believed Hungary needed a left-wing party in parliament, even though the elections were expected to transform the political landscape.

"I voted for the Socialists, but I only made up my mind in the last minute. Their corruption and scandals kept me hesitating, but ultimately I thought they would lose big time now, so it's important to have some sort of Socialist group in Parliament," said Piroska Szabo, 47, a kindergarten teacher.

"Not because these guys deserve it, but because 4 or 8 years down the line, we will need a viable left-wing alternative again."

Voter turnout at 5:00 a.m. EDT (0900 GMT) was 24.78 percent, lower than 27.23 percent recorded at the same time four years ago.

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Elections 2010

Join us on April 11th, 2010 for continous election updates and results! They will be posted under the news menupoint!

In April of this year, The Republic of Hungary will hold its Parliamentary Elections. The center left party (MSZP) is likely to lose its governing position, while the center right party (FIDESZ) could gain a two-thirds supermajority. Over the past couple of years FIDESZ has been slowly gaining support. Most recent polls have placed FIDESZ at around 60%. Concurrently, a radical right and semi-racist party called “Jobbik” started exhibiting terrifying results in these polls. It is entirely within the roam of possibility that Jobbik will obtain over ten percent of the votes this year. Jobbik is promising to fight “gypsy crime”, openly opposes many of the ideals and basic structures of the European Union, and some of the Jobbik leaders' policies could exasperate tensions between Hungary and neighboring countries. The party commonly uses racial slurs against the Roma and Jews. It is not uncommon to encounter "Árpád sávos" flags at their rallies, the same flag that was used by the Hungarian fascists during the 1940's.

It cannot be stressed enough how extraordinarily important it is for LMP (Politics can Be Different) to gain mandates in the Hungarian National Assembly this year. Three chief reasons for why LMP has to gain seats in the parliament are:

1. LMP promises to fight back. LMP will combat the radical right; LMP will combat a 2/3 supermajority; LMP will combat corruption. If one were to take Jobbik’s stance verbatim, then rising conflicts with our neighbors are possible; racism, tension, and violence between the ethnic Hungarians and ethnic Roma would undoubtedly grow; and their populist demagogic economic policy could totally crumble the Hungarian economy. There needs to be a party that can combat Jobbik. LMP is prepared to do so through logical reasoning, intelligent campaigning, and other constitutional and legal means. It is also possible that this year FIDESZ will gain a 2/3 supermajority in the National Assembly. In modern democracies supermajorities are rare but unhealthy phenomenon. The more parties that gain seats in the parliament, the less likely it is that FIDESZ will gain a supermajority.
   
   
2. LMP will Stand up for social justice, a green revolution and environmental sustainability, and fiscal responsibility. LMP is prepared to modernize Hungary; take responsibility for an environment worthy of mankind, for the lives of future generations and for global ecological issues. LMP will promote social justice and integration, and decisive action against racial and cultural exclusion passed down from generation to generation. LMP will end reckless spending, and reform our tax system to allow for economical growth and promote a green revolution.
   
   
3. Its promise to purify the system with fresh new faces, new ideas, and new politicians. LMP is the only alternative other than Jobbik that is not run by worn-out politicians. It is a joint initiative of hundreds of people with proven professional experience and achievements. LMP is composed of committed citizens with a clear vision of bringing about change in public affairs on the local, national and European levels.

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The Hungarian National Assembly

(Picture Taken by Ludovic Lepeltier and Damien Leblois, public domain) In the Republic of Hungary the supreme power lies within the National Assembly and the Constitutional Court. The supreme law ruling over the National Assembly is the Constitution of Hungary. Most (but not all) amendments to the constitution require at least a two thirds majority of the National Assembly. According to the constitution, The 386 members of the National Assembly are responsible for:

• Amending the Hungarian Constitution
• Proposing and passing federal laws
• Creating and passing the republic’s annual federal budget
• Passing annual national programs
• Reforming the federal systems as needed
• Accepting treaties and other documents related to foreign relations
• Declaring war and peace
• Declaring martial law
• Electing the President of Hungary
• Providing amnesty in civil and legal cases

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Parliamentary Elections in Hungary:

Elections for the National Assembly have to be held during the months of April or May four years following the preceding National Assembly elections. It is the responsibility of the President to decide upon the exact dates. Local, national, and European Union elections are all held using private ballots in Hungary.

The election system in Hungary is rather complex, but is intended to create a compromise between a majority-win system and a proportionally represented system. The Hungarian National Assembly houses 386 members. Of these, 176 representatives are elected by their individual parliamentary districts; 152 representatives gain seats through regional lists; an additional 58 representatives gain their mandates through the national lists. When voting, voters are provided two separate ballots. One ballot is for the parliamentary district representatives; the other is for the regional lists. To gain positions on the voting ballots, parties and candidates are required to collect support slips prior to the election. Each eligible voter receives one support slip per election season that he or she can award to any candidate and party.

Individual Districts:
There are 176 parliamentary districts in the Republic of Hungary. For a candidate to gain a position on the parliamentary district's ballot, he or she is required to collect 750 valid support slips in that district. The first round of voting is the final only if more than 50% of the voting public has voted and one candidate has received a simple majority. If less than 50% of the voting public has voted, all of the candidates from first round can participate in the second round of voting. If more than 50% of the voting public participated in the first round, but none of the candidate received a simple majority, then candidates can advance to the next round if:

• They’ve received at least 15% in the first round or...
• If there are less than three candidates who have received 15%, then the three best performing candidates can advance

Plurality wins in both of the scenarios where there is a second round of voting. Often, before the second round of voting, candidates resign their candidacy and endorse another in an effort to gain votes for one of the two Front-runners.

Regional Lists:
Political parties are responsible of establishing a regional list of candidates. To do so, the party must collect 750 valid support slips in at least ¼ (in at least 2 districts in districts where there are less than 8 districts) of the region’s individual districts. A support slip for a parliamentary district candidate is also a support slip for his or her party. Voters are responsible for voting on the party regional lists. Much like for Individual districts, the first round of voting is the final one if the turnout rate is greater than 50%; if not, voting will be repeated in the second round. Those parties that nationwide have received more than 5% of the votes for their "lists" are elidgible for gaining regional mandates. The 152 National Assembly mandates are distributed proportionally between these parties.

Example:
If LMP wins 10% of list votes nationwide, then LMP will receive ~10% of the regional mandates available in all of the regions. In the region of Budapest, for example, this would mean around 3 mandates; the first 3 candidates on LMP's Budapest list will be awarded parliamentary mandates.

National Lists:
Parties who have succeeded in establishing seven or more Regional Lists may then also establish a National List as well. There are a total of 58 parliamentary seats that are assigned to candidates on party National Lists. The votes of the losing candidates of the 176 individual districts are added up, and using their party affiliations, the 58 mandates are then distributed proportionally between the parties that have met the parliamentary threshold of 5%.

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