Power Cemented
Parliamentary Elections in Hungary: Another Win for Fidesz
Abstract
For the fourth time in a row, the party alliance Fidesz-KDNP has won Hungary’s parliamentary elections and obtained a two-thirds majority of seats. This clearcut victory came as a surprise. The opposition parties may have been severely disadvantaged and confronted with an electoral system worked to their detriment. Nonetheless, it had been expected that the opposition parties, which campaigned on a joint list, were going to be able to pose a danger to Fidesz. That this did not succeed lay in their own mistakes – in rivalries and distrust in their alliance. Moreover the new radical right-wing party Mi Hazánk entered parliament, which also benefitted Viktor Orbán and Fidesz. Viktor Orbán and Fidesz have emerged from the elections stronger. The restructuring of the country to secure power continues. The first constitutional amendment to ensue after the elections introduced a new form of state of emergency, which was immediately imposed.