Ethnic Hungarian parties’ success in Romania election – Reactions

Budapest, December 12 (MTI) – Cooperation between ethnic Hungarian parties in Romania has proven successful; the Hungarian community will have a strong representation in the Bucharest parliament, deputy Prime Minister Zsolt Semjén, head of Hungary’s co-ruling Christian Democrats, said late on Sunday. The alliance between the Democratic Alliance of Hungarians in Romania (RMDSZ) and the Hungarian Civic Party (MPP) has been successful, Hungary’s ruling Fidesz party’s communications director said on Sunday.

In his statement, Semjén said that “this wonderful result has confirmed that in cardinal questions for the Hungarian community cooperation is a moral obligation and divisions must not be allowed”.

Fidesz: RMDSZ-MPP alliance proves successful in Romanian election

RMDSZ and MPP’s decision to cooperate in the election seems to have had a positive effect on voter turnout and mood, Balázs Hidvégi told MTI, commenting on the preliminary results.

The early data indicate that the national turnout rate will be around 38-40 percent, while turnout in most of the counties inhabited by ethnic Hungarians is expected to be higher, Hidvégi said.

He noted Harghita (Hargita) County, where turnout was 44 percent and Bihor (Bihar) and Salaj (Szilágy) Counties, each of which had registered turnout rates of 43 percent. In Covasna (Kovászna) County, voter turnout in municipalities inhabited by Hungarians greatly exceeded the turnout in cities and villages where most of the residents are Romanian, he added.

“This indicates that from a Hungarian point of view the result of this election will be better than the last one’s,” Hidvégi said, adding that since the size of Romania’s parliament has been reduced, the ethnic Hungarian parties can acquire a greater share of the seats.

Answering a question, Hidvégi said it was particularly important for Fidesz that ethnic Hungarians achieve greater representation in the Romanian parliament.

According to an early exit poll, the Social Democrat Party (PSD) won the elections with 46 percent of the votes. RMDSZ is projected to clear the 5 percent parliamentary threshold with 6 percent of the votes.

Photo: MTI

Source: MTI