Magyar won decisively

Torches against Orbán: Magyar wants to “liberate” Hungary

Viktor Orbán’s political era in Hungary is history.(Bild: AFP/ATTILA KISBENEDEK)

After 16 years in power, Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbán suffered a decisive defeat in Sunday’s parliamentary election. Péter Magyar won over the public and, with his TISZA party, even secured a two-thirds majority. Read about the key developments in the “Krone” live ticker.

The most important news in brief:

• Magyar’s TISZA party secured 138 of the 199 seats. Orbán’s Fidesz party, which has been in power since 2010, won 54 seats, while the far-right Mi Hazánk party won seven.

• Voter turnout of just under 80 percent sets a new record for parliamentary elections in Hungary.

• Meanwhile, leading Austrian politicians have also weighed in on the election results. 
• “The Hungarians fought for their freedom today,” writes “Krone” editor Kurt Seinitz in his column.  

The election ticker to read:

Orbán congratulated his challenger on election night
Viktor Orbán’s 16-year era came to an end this Sunday evening. Péter Magyar, the man who just a few months ago was a blank slate in the Fidesz power structure, has achieved the seemingly impossible: he has toppled the Goliath of European right-wing populists. Orbán congratulated the winner on election night.

Graphic: How Hungary voted

Péter Magyar: Pro-European and conservative
The result is a political earthquake whose tremors will be felt far beyond the borders of the Carpathian Basin. With his TISZA party, Magyar has not only united the opposition but—more crucially—made a deep impact on Fidesz’s core voter base. His pro-European course, coupled with a conservative set of values, offered many Hungarians the alternative they had longed for for years: a Hungary that is proud of its traditions but seeks its place at the heart of Europe, not on its fringes.

Photo series from Election Day:

The key to success lay in Magyar’s tireless tour of the provinces. In places where the state media machine normally has a firm grip on reality, he spoke about concrete concerns: the closed doctors’ offices, the young people who had left, the nepotism in local councils.

Above all loomed the question of whether Magyar could not only govern, but fundamentally transform the country. This required a two-thirds majority in Parliament—that instrument of absolute power which Viktor Orbán had used for years to cement his system. By shortly before 10 p.m., it was also clear that Magyar had achieved this goal as well.

The Election in Hungary

• The 199 seats in the Budapest parliament will be allocated for the next four years through a combination of first-past-the-post and proportional representation.
• 93 seats are allocated via party lists, as in Austria, and 106 in single-member districts, as in the United Kingdom.
• There is a five-percent threshold for parties to enter parliament. In the single-member districts, the candidate who receives the most votes wins. 

This historic shift was driven by a voter turnout that eclipsed all previous records in Hungarian democracy. By early afternoon, it was already clear that Hungarians were flocking to the polls in droves. In the end, turnout reached nearly 78 percent.

Initial projections caused brief confusion
The complicated electoral system caused confusion, as the first projections suddenly showed Fidesz clearly ahead of TISZA. However, only the rural areas—where Orbán traditionally has stronger support—had been counted at that point. It wasn’t until later in the evening that the tide turned.

In Budapest, a sense of liberation prevails. Hungary has chosen change—and in doing so, sent a signal that echoes all the way to Brussels and Moscow.