Politics of Hungary
Constitution 1949 Constitution
Executive President (list) Katalin Novák Government Current cabinet Prime Minister (list) Viktor Orbán
Parliament National Assembly Speaker: László Kövér Political parties Fidesz Christian Democratic People's Party (KDNP) Jobbik Politics Can Be Different (LMP) Dialogue for Hungary (PM) Hungarian Socialist Party (MSZP) Democratic Coalition (DK) Momentum Movement (M) Everybody's Hungary Movement (MMM) Our Homeland Movement (MH)
Recent elections Parliamentary: 2014 2018 2022 Presidential: 2017 2022 next Local: 2010 2014 2019 European: 2014 2019 2024
Budapest Mayor of Budapest Gergely Karácsony Mayoral elections 1994 1998 2002 2006 2010 2014 2019
Administrative divisions Districts Counties Regions Subregions
Foreign relations Austria–Hungary relations China–Hungary relations France–Hungary relations Germany–Hungary relations Hungary–Italy relations Hungary–Russia relations Hungary–United Kingdom relations Hungary–United States relations Timeline of Hungary–European Union relations Politics of the European Union
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The politics of Hungary takes place in a framework of a parliamentary representative democratic republic. The prime minister is the head of government of a pluriform multi-party system, while the president is the head of state and holds a largely ceremonial position.

Executive power is exercised by the government. Legislative power is vested in both the government and the parliament. The party system since the last elections has been dominated by the conservative Fidesz. The three larger oppositions are Democratic Coalition (DK), Momentum and Jobbik; there are also opposition parties with a small fraction in parliament (e.g. Politics Can Be Different). The judiciary is theoretically independent of the executive and the legislature, but in practice is strongly influenced by the ruling Fidesz Party.^[1]

Hungary is an independent state, which has been a member of the European Union since 2004. Since 1989 Hungary has been a parliamentary republic. Legislative power is exercised by the unicameral National Assembly that consists of 199 members. Members of the National Assembly are elected for four years.

The Economist Intelligence Unit rated Hungary a "flawed democracy" in 2020.^[2] With a democracy score of 3.96/7, Freedom House no longer considers Hungary a democracy.^[3]

In the April 2022 election, Prime Minister Viktor Orbán won a fourth consecutive term in office. His party, Fidesz, secured another two-thirds majority in parliament.^[4]

Executive branch

The president of the republic, elected by the National Assembly every five years, has a largely ceremonial role, but they are nominally the commander-in-chief of the armed forces and their powers include the nomination of the prime minister, who is to be elected by a majority of the votes of the members of Parliament, based on the recommendation made by the president of the republic. If the president dies, resigns or is otherwise unable to carry out his duties, the speaker of the National Assembly becomes acting president.

Due to the Hungarian Constitution, based on the post-World War II Basic Law of the Federal Republic of Germany, the prime minister has a leading role in the executive branch as he selects Cabinet ministers and has the exclusive right to dismiss them (similarly to the competences of the German federal chancellor). Each cabinet nominee appears before one or more parliamentary committees in consultative open hearings, survive a vote by the Parliament and must be formally approved by the president.

In Communist Hungary, the executive branch of the Hungarian People's Republic was represented by the Council of Ministers.

Legislative branch

Parliament of Hungary.

The unicameral, 199-member National Assembly (Országgyűlés) is the highest organ of state authority and initiates and approves legislation sponsored by the prime minister. Its members are elected for a four-year term. The election threshold is 5%, but it only applies to the multi-seat constituencies and the compensation seats, not the single-seat constituencies.

Political parties and elections

Party		Party-list			Constituency			Total seats	+/–
		Votes	%	Seats	Votes	%	Seats
	Fidesz–KDNP	3,060,706	54.13	48	2,823,419	52.80	87	135	+2
	United for Hungary	1,947,331	34.44	38	1,983,708	37.09	19	57	–8
	Our Homeland Movement	332,487	5.88	6	307,064	5.74	0	6	New
	Hungarian Two-Tailed Dog Party	185,052	3.27	0	126,648	2.37	0	0	0
	Solution Movement	58,929	1.04	0	64,341	1.20	0	0	New
	Party of Normal Life	39,720	0.70	0	31,495	0.59	0	0	New
	National Self-Government of Germans	24,630	0.44	1				1	0
	National Self-Government of Croats	1,760	0.03	0				0	0
	National Self-Government of Slovaks	1,208	0.02	0				0	0
	National Self-Government of Rusyns	645	0.01	0				0	0
	National Self-Government of Romanians	526	0.01	0				0	0
	National Self-Government of Serbs	418	0.01	0				0	0
	National Self-Government of Ukrainians	396	0.01	0				0	0
	National Self-Government of Poles	281	0.00	0				0	0
	National Self-Government of Greeks	232	0.00	0				0	0
	National Self-Government of Slovenes	219	0.00	0				0	0
	National Self-Government of Armenians	163	0.00	0				0	0
	National Self-Government of Bulgarians	157	0.00	0				0	0
	Leftist Alliance (ISZOMM–MMP)				8,678	0.16	0	0	New
	True Democratic Party				989	0.02	0	0	New
	Civic Response				521	0.01	0	0	New
	Our Party – IMA				326	0.01	0	0	New
	Party of Greens				208	0.00	0	0	New
	Democratic Organisation of the Hungarian Poor and Workers				177	0.00	0	0	New
	Hungarian Liberal Party				152	0.00	0	0	0
Total		5,654,860	100.00	93	5,347,726	100.00	106	199	0
Valid votes		5,654,860	99.00
Invalid/blank votes		57,065	1.00
Total votes		5,711,925	100.00
Registered voters/turnout		8,215,304	69.53
Source: National Electoral Commission,[5] National Electoral Commission

Judicial branches

Constitutional Court of Hungary.

A fifteen-member Constitutional Court has power to challenge legislation on grounds of unconstitutionality. This body was last filled in July 2010. Members are elected for a term of twelve years. Critics of the ruling coalition contend that since the Hungarian government filled the Constitutional Court with loyal judges, the institution mostly serves to legitimize government interests and has lost its original purpose as democratic defender of the rule of law and of human rights - as several reports of independent human rights NGOs, such as the Hungarian Helsinki Committee emphasize.^[6]

The president of the Supreme Court of Hungary (Curia) and the Hungarian civil and penal legal system he leads is fully independent of the Executive Branch.

The attorney general or chief prosecutor of Hungary is currently fully independent of the executive branch, but his status is actively debated.

Several ombudsman offices exist in Hungary to protect civil, minority, educational and ecological rights in non-judicial matters. They have held the authority to issue legally binding decisions since late 2003.

Financial branch

The central bank, the Hungarian National Bank was fully self-governing between 1990 and 2004, but new legislation gave certain appointment rights to the executive branch in November 2004 which is disputed before the Constitutional Court.

Administrative divisions

Hungary is divided in 19 counties (megyék, singular – megye), 23 urban counties* (megyei jogú városok, singular – megyei jogú város), and 1 capital city** (főváros); Bács-Kiskun, Baranya, Békés, Békéscsaba*, Borsod-Abaúj-Zemplén, Budapest**, Csongrád, Debrecen*, Dunaújváros*, Eger*, Érd*, Fejér, Győr*, Győr-Moson-Sopron, Hajdú-Bihar, Heves, Hódmezővásárhely*, Jász-Nagykun-Szolnok, Kaposvár*, Kecskemét*, Komárom-Esztergom, Miskolc*, Nagykanizsa*, Nógrád, Nyíregyháza*, Pécs*, Pest, Salgótarján*, Somogy, Sopron*, Szabolcs-Szatmár-Bereg, Szeged*, Szekszárd*, Székesfehérvár*, Szolnok*, Szombathely*, Tatabánya*, Tolna, Vas, Veszprém, Veszprém*, Zala, Zalaegerszeg*

Involvement in international organisations

Hungary is a member of the ABEDA, Australia Group, BIS, CE, CEI, CERN, CEPI EAPC, EBRD, ECE, EU (member, as by 1 May 2004), FAO, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICC, ICRM, IDA, IEA, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, IMO, Inmarsat, Intelsat, Interpol, IOC, IOM, ISO, ITU, ITUC, NAM (guest), NATO, NEA, NSG, OAS (observer), OECD, OPCW, OSCE, PCA, SECI, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNFICYP, UNHCR, UNIDO, UNIKOM, UNMIBH, UNMIK, UNOMIG, UNU, UPU, WCO, WFTU, Visegrád Group, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTrO, and the Zangger Committee.

Ministries

Note: with restructuring and reorganisation, this information may change even within a governmental period.

Notes

References