Parliamentary election in Hungary 2002

← 1998General election 20022006 →

(in %)

 %

50

40

30th

20th

10

0

42.1

41.1

5.6

4.4

3.9

3.0

MSZP

Fidesz ^b

SZDSZ

MIÉP

Centr. ^e

Otherwise.

Gains and losses

compared to 1998

 % p

 10

   8th

   6th

   4th

   2

   0

  -2

  -4

  -6

  -8th

-10

-12

-14

-16

+9.9

+9.8

-2.3

-1.1

-0.1

-16.0

MSZP

Fidesz ^b

SZDSZ

MIÉP

Centr. ^e

Otherwise.

Remarks:

^b Elective alliance with the MDF . 1998: Fidesz 28.2% and MDF 3.1%

^e 1998: KDNP 2.6% and MDNP 1.4%

    

A total of 386 seats

• MSZP : 178
• Common candidates MSZP – SZDSZ : 1
• SZDSZ : 19
• Fidesz - MDF : 188

Majorities by constituency:

MSZP

Fidesz – MDF

SZDSZ

The parliamentary elections in Hungary in 2002 took place on April 7 and 21, 2002. It was the fourth parliamentary election since the end of real socialism in Hungary. Around 8.1 million people were eligible to vote in order to redefine the 386 members of the Hungarian Parliament in two ballots . The voter turnout reached its previous high of 70.5%.

The Hungarian Socialist Party (MSZP) received the majority of the votes ; after the election, as it did between 1994 and 1998, it formed a coalition with the liberal Association of Free Democrats (SZDSZ). Péter Medgyessy became the new Prime Minister. The 1998 ruling until 2002 Fidesz of Victor Orban arrived in List conjunction with the Hungarian Democratic Forum (MDF), although the most seats, but could prevent the third change of government is not in a row. The election campaign has been described as the most polarized in Hungarian history.

Starting position

In the 1998 parliamentary election , the ruling MSZP received the most votes, but thanks to its good performance in the run-off elections, Fidesz achieved the most seats in parliament. Together with the Independent Party of Small Farmers, Agricultural Workers and the Bourgeoisie (FKGP) and the MDF, he formed a center-right coalition under Prime Minister Viktor Orbán .

Between 1998 and 2002 there was an increasing polarization of Hungarian politics into a center-left and a national-conservative camp. In the surveys, MSZP and Fidesz as representatives of these two camps were roughly on a par from 2001 onwards. While the two coalition partners clearly lost support and importance, Fidesz developed into a “right-of-center people's party”. The FKGP fell below two percent in the polls after a party official was arrested for accepting bribes and József Torgyán's leadership within the party was questioned.

Fidesz and MDF ran for election on a joint list and with a joint program. The Fidesz campaign rhetoric was described as “nationalistic”, but the party also spoke out in favor of integrating Hungary into the European Union . The MSZP named Péter Medgyessy as a candidate for the office of Prime Minister in August 2001 and only passed its election program in January 2002, so that it entered the election campaign relatively late. Central themes in the election campaigns of both camps were demographic change , welfare, education and health policy. The election campaign was described as the most polarized in Hungarian history - mainly because of the ideological differences emphasized by both sides.

Result

Final result of the 2002 general election

Political party		First votes				Second votes				National mandates	Total mandates
		number	%	+/-	Seats	number	%	+/-	Seats		number	+/-	%
	Hungarian Socialist Party	2,277,732	40.5	+10.7	78	2,361,983	42.1	+9.9	69	31	178	+44	46.1
	Fidesz - Hungarian Democratic Forum	2,217,755	39.4	+10.3	95	2,306,763	41.1	+9.8	67	26th	188	+23	48.7
	League of Free Democrats	380,982	6.8	−3.4	2	313.084	5.6	−2.3	4th	13	19th	−5	4.9
	Hungarian truth and life party	257,455	4.6	−1.0	-	245.316	4.4	−1.1	-	-	-	−14	-
	Center Párt	182.256	3.2	New	-	219.029	3.9	New	-	-	-	-	-
	Hungarian Labor Party	108,732	1.9	−1.8	-	121.503	2.2	−1.9	-	-	-	-	-
	Independent party of small farmers, farm workers and the bourgeoisie	67,401	1.2	−12.1	-	42,338	0.8	−13.0	-	-	-	−48	-
	Új Baloldal Párt	5,597	0.1	New	-	3,198	0.1	New	-	-	-	-	-
	Reform Kisgazdapárt	2,758	0.0	New	-	1,086	0.0	New	-	-	-	-	-
	Kisgazdapárt a Kisgazda Szövetség Pártja	2,699	0.0	New	-	451	0.0	New	-	-	-	-	-
	Others	8,660	0.2	-	-	1,975	0.0	-	-	-	-	-	-
	Common candidates MSZP - MSZDP	41,461	0.7	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-
	Common candidates MSZP - SZDSZ	27,892	0.5	-	1	-	-	-	-	-	1	+1	0.3
	Independent	43,215	0.8	−0.9	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	−1	-
total		5,624,595	100		176	5,616,726	100		140	70	386	-	100
Eligible voters		8,061,101				8,061,101
Voters / turnout		5,685,655	70.5	+14.2		5,685,655	70.5	+14.2
Invalid votes		55,863	1.0			63,897	1.1
Valid votes		5,624,595	99.0			5,616,726	98.9

The first votes refer to the first ballot. In the second ballot, 6,018,063 people were eligible to vote in the 131 constituencies in which runoff elections were held. 4,423,805 of these cast their vote (turnout: 73.5%).

literature

• Kenneth Benoit: Like Déjà Vu All Over Again: The Hungarian Parliamentary Elections of 2002 . In: Journal of Communist Studies and Transition Politics . tape 18 , no. 4 , December 2002, p. 119-133 , doi : 10.1080 / 714003616 .
• Barnabas Racz: The Left in Hungary and the 2002 Parliamentary Elections . In: Europe-Asia Studies . tape 55 , no. 5 , 2003, p. 747-769 , doi : 10.1080 / 0966813032000086864 .
• Florian Grotz and László Hubai: Hungary . In: Dieter Nohlen and Philip Stöver (eds.): Elections in Europe: a data handbook . Nomos, Baden-Baden 2010, ISBN 978-3-8329-5609-7 , p. 873-946 .

Web links

• Parliamentary election 2002 on the website of the Hungarian National Electoral Office (Hungarian, English)

Individual evidence

1. ^ Barnabas Racz: The Left in Hungary and the 2002 Parliamentary Elections , p. 754.
2. ↑ Kenneth Benoit: Like Déjà Vu All Over Again: The Hungarian Parliamentary Elections of 2002 , p. 124.
3. ↑ Kenneth Benoit: Like Déjà Vu All Over Again: The Hungarian Parliamentary Elections of 2002 , p. 123.
4. ^ Barnabas Racz: The Left in Hungary and the 2002 Parliamentary Elections , p. 756.
5. ↑ Florian Grotz and László Hubai: Hungary . In: Elections in Europe: a data handbook , p. 884.
6. ^ ^{A b} Florian Grotz and László Hubai: Hungary . In: Elections in Europe: a data handbook , p. 927.