poll

Orbán ‘winner’ of epidemic – Poll

ORBÁN Viktor
The number of Hungarians awarding Prime Minister Viktor Orbán high marks has grown thanks to his handling of the novel coronavirus epidemic, polling firm Nezopont Institute said.

The proportion of those satisfied with Viktor Orbán’s performance has clearly increased as a result of his management of the coronavirus epidemic, and currently 62 percent of Hungarian society are satisfied with how the Prime Minister has handled the situation, reveals a public opinion poll conducted by Nézőpont Intézet. The Prime Minister’s popularity index has improved significantly in comparison to previous years and even early this year.

While in previous years about half of the Hungarians (50 and 52 percent, respectively), were satisfied with the Prime Minister’s performance, this time around almost two-thirds of the respondents feel this way.

The Prime Minister has clearly benefited politically from effective action against the coronavirus. While in 2018 and 2019 satisfaction with the Prime Minister’s performance was around 50 percent on an annual average (50 and 52 percent, respectively), Viktor Orbán had improved the same indicator as early as the beginning of the year (54 percent). The opinion poll conducted last week shows that currently 6 out of 10 people are behind the head of government (62 percent). The proportion of those dissatisfied with Viktor Orbán’s performance currently makes up less than a third of society. This may be due to the fact that Hungary’s swift and decisive emergency response during the coronavirus epidemic has produced better results in comparison to Western European countries.

The camp of those satisfied with Viktor Orbán is even larger than that of governing party sympathizers, whom the May survey results of Nézőpont Intézet show to be 42 percent of the total population.

The 2022 parliamentary elections will be much more about the prime ministerial candidates as personalities rather than the popularity of their respective parties.

Thus the opposition will have two obstacles to overcome on the way to victory.

Finding a joint prime ministerial candidate will be the first task, however, at this stage it is safer to bet who would not become Viktor Orbán’s counter-candidate rather than who would. As the second task, the opposition must convince the public that their joint candidate would govern the country better than the incumbent prime minister. Viktor Orbán’s outstanding popularity resulting from recent events will turn this into a particularly big challenge for the opposition.

Methodology

The public opinion poll was conducted by Nézőpont Intézet between 24-26 June 2020 based on telephone interviews with 1,000 respondents. The sample is representative of the 18+ population by geneder, age, region, settlement type and level of education. A sample of 1,000 at 95 percent accuracy has a margin of error of 3.16 percent.

Poland resumes delayed presidential election

andzej duda poland election

Polling stations have opened on Sunday morning for the first round of the Polish presidential elections, which were expected to take place on May 10 but were delayed by the COVID-19 pandemic.

Incumbent Polish President Andrzej Duda from the ruling conservative Law and Justice party seeks re-election for another five-year term after his victory in the elections of 2015.

trump duda
Read alsoTrump says “probably” sending U.S. troops from Germany to Poland

Polls showed that his main rival is Warsaw Mayor Rafal Trzaskowski, a moderately liberal Christian democrat who entered the race rather late to replace Malgorzata Kidawa-Blonska, after the party’s original candidate tanked in opinion polls.

There are a total of 11 candidates in the elections, including a Christian conservative celebrity journalist, an agrarian-focused social conservative, a far-right nationalist, a social democrat and several others.

Polls showed that Duda is taking the lead but unlikely to top 50 percent of the votes needed to win the presidency. The winner of the first round will compete with the runner-up in a runoff scheduled on July 12.

warsaw poland
Read alsoPoland resumes EU passenger air service, COVID-19 cases top 30,000

Law and Justice, led by party chairman Jaroslaw Kaczynski, wanted the elections to go ahead by postal voting only amid favorable polling, despite strong opposition from the public.

Critics argued that elections during lockdowns favor the incumbent, since other candidates are unable to hold on-the-ground campaigns, and put voters’ health at risk.

The polls close at 9 p.m. local time (1900 GMT).

Poll: Biden holds 11-point lead over Trump

biden for president

Former U.S. Vice President Joe Biden is currently holding a 11-point lead over sitting President Donald Trump in this year’s race for the White House, according to a Quinnipiac University poll released on Wednesday.

Biden, the presumptive Democratic presidential nominee, leads Trump 50 to 39 percent in a head-to-head matchup in the U.S. presidential election, the poll showed. That’s up from the 49 – 41 percent lead Biden held in April’s poll, but the change is within the margin of error.

obama
Read alsoObama endorses Biden for U.S. president

Among the registered voters, Democrats go to Biden 88 – 5 percent; Republicans go to Trump 87 – 8 percent; and independents go to Biden 47 – 36 percent.

“What does the 11 point Biden lead tell us? At best for Team Trump, it says voter confidence in President Trump is shaky. At worst for them, as coronavirus cases rise, Trump’s judgement is questioned – and November looms,” Quinnipiac University Polling Analyst Tim Malloy said.

Trump’s job approval rating ticks lower amid the coronavirus outbreak, according to the poll.

Forty-two percent of voters approve of the job he is doing, while 53 percent disapprove. That’s compared to a 45 – 51 percent job approval rating he received in April, his highest ever.

TRUMP, Donald
Read alsoTrump fires back after Obama swipes at his coronavirus response

On Trump’s response to public health crisis, 41 percent of voters responding to the poll approve while 56 percent disapprove. That is down from a 46 – 51 percent approval rating in April.

Besides, 50 percent approve of Trump’s handling of the economy while 47 percent disapprove, compared to a 51 – 44 percent approval in April.

The Quinnipiac poll surveyed 1,323 self-identified registered voters by phone from May 14 to 18. It has a margin of error of 2.7 percentage points.

Orbán’s alliance maintains lead in polls

fidesz-kdnp-alliance orbán

Ruling Fidesz has maintained its lead in the polls, with support of over 50 percent among decided voters, the Nézőpont Institute said on Tuesday.

Among decided voters, the ruling Fidesz-Christian Democrats’ support has grown to 54 percent by May from 51 percent in the beginning of the year,

Nézőpont said.

Meanwhile, support for the opposition coalition has fallen to 38 percent, it said.

Of the opposition parties, the Momentum Movement is leading with 13 percent among decided voters, while the Democratic Coalition’s support has fallen to 11 percent and Jobbik’s to 9 percent.

The Socialist-Párbeszéd alliance is at three percent, LMP at two percent, and Mi Hazánk (Our Homeland) at one percent, the pollster said.

The non-parliamentary satirical Two-tailed Dog party would garner 6 percent were the election held this Sunday.

In the whole population, the ruling parties have the support of 43 percent, some 3.5 million people. The opposition coalition is supported by 26 percent of all voters, or some 2 million people, poll said.

The poll showed that 72 percent of Hungarians are “satisfied” with how the government is handling the coronavirus epidemic. That means that

41 percent of opposition voters also approve of the government’s work in this respect, the institute said.

Nézőpont conducted the research on May 7-8 by phone, on a representative sample of 1,000 people.

coronavirus hungary
Read alsoHungarians trust the least the healthcare system within the EU

Orbán’s alliance keeps getting stronger – Latest poll

orbán szijjártó meeting

A high level of confidence in the government has had a positive effect on the ruling parties as well and reached 55 percent among active voters, reveals a telephone interview based public opinion poll conducted by Nézőpont Intézet last week. Due to the success of the curfew 6 out 10 respondents did not meet people other than those they share a household with.

Accoriding to the pro-govt think tank Nézőpont, the ruling parties have also benefited from the popularity of firm government action against the coronavirus epidemic, as well as from the strong confidence in government measures. Since the beginning of the year, Fidesz’s support among active voters has increased by 5 percentage points, from 50 to 55 percent. In the case of the opposition, there are no winners, only losers in the last month and a half with the leftist Democratic Coalition (DK) being the strongest among active voters (12 percent), with liberal Momentum (11 percent) and Jobbik party (9 percent), with the largest opposition parliamentary faction, performing even more poorly.

The losers are mainly the MSZP-Dialogue joint list (3 percent) and the LMP (1 percent), as both would perform below the entry threshold should an election be held “this Sunday”.

The shift in party competition favourable for the government coincides with satisfaction with government measures against the coronavirus. Last week, 72 percent of respondents indicated they were more satisfied than not. The curfew was considered sufficiently stringent by 64 percent of respondents, while 30 percent called for further restriction. It is good news that

Hungarians proved to be disciplined: according to their own statements, 37 percent of respondents did actually “stay at home” the day before the survey, and 61 percent did not meet anyone for longer than 15 minutes apart from those they share their household with.

The strengthening of the ruling party and the continued poor performance of the opposition may also be due to the opposition’s defeat in the great public battle of recent weeks.

Nearly two-thirds of Hungarians (64 percent) say the government would call off the state of emergency when no longer justified by the epidemic, with just over a quarter (28 percent) doubting it influenced the opposition’s narrative.

Even the absolute majority of Budapest residents (52 percent) and a third of those critical of the government (32 percent) say that the government will not unduly extend the period of special powers.

Methodology

The public opinion poll was conducted by Nézőpont Intézet between 16-18 April 2020 based on telephone interviews with 1,000 respondents. The sample is representative of the 18+ population by geneder, age, region, settlement type and level of education. A sample of 1,000 at 95 percent accuracy has a margin of error of 3.16 percent.

Survey: Most Hungarians continue to back strict border measures

A vast majority of Hungarians continue to favour strong border protection measures amid increased migration pressure on Europe’s external borders, according to a survey by the Századvég Foundation released on Thursday.

The survey found that 82 percent of Hungarians were aware that a new wave of migrants could be on its way towards Europe in light of the armed conflict in Syria, as well as Turkey’s announcement that it would no longer stop Syrian refugees from entering Europe.

Read alsoSurvey: Most Hungarians continue to back strict border measures

Altogether 80 percent of respondents said the Hungarian government should beef up border security and continue working to prevent “uncontrolled migration into the country”. Fully 10 percent held the opposite view, while another 10 percent had no opinion on the matter.

Századvég found that even 51 percent of left-wing voters are in favour of increased border protection, while 29 percent say Hungary should take in people fleeing Syria.

Read alsoSurvey: Most Hungarians continue to back strict border measures

Fully 78 percent of self-declared centrists and 95 percent of right-wing voters said they opposed easing border controls.

Századvég conducted the survey with a sample of 1,000 adults.

Orbán announces new ‘national consultation’ survey

orbán in shadow

Prime Minister Viktor Orbán has annnounced plans for a new “national consultation” survey partly to gauge public opinion on court rulings for compensation payments to prisoners because “for certain activist groups the rights of violent criminals have become more important than the rights of law-abiding citizens,” the online edition of daily Magyar Nemzet said on Wednesday.

The prime minister held a speech behind closed doors at a group meeting of the ruling Fidesz-Christian Democrats group in Balatonfüred, the portal said. He briefed lawmakers about the tasks facing the cabinet and the party group, it added.

Orbán Brussels EU summit
Read alsoMore than 1 million ‘National Consultation’ surveys completed, says Hungarian government

Orbán also said that during the past ten years, the cabinet had repeatedly asked people’s opinions in important issues and “joint decisions have demonstrated the power of national consensus”, magyarnemzet.hu reported.

In the new national consultation survey, the government wants to find out people’s opinion on the “industrialised prison business”, on tightening the rules for releasing prisoners on probation, on the alleged corruption of judges connected to the acquittal of leaders of the construction company Szeviep, charged with major embezzlement, and on compensation payments to Roma in Gyöngyöspata.

Orbán said the head of the Prime Minister’s Office Gergely Gulyás would present details at a regular press conference on Thursday.

Read alsoGovernment launches national consultation on family policy measures

POLL: Fidesz-ChristDem alliance maintains lead

ORBÁN Viktor

The ruling alliance of Fidesz and the Christian Democrats has maintained its lead in January, with 50 percent of decided voters declaring support in a Nézőpont poll published on Tuesday.

Support for the non-parliamentary liberal opposition Momentum Movement was 13 percent, while both the conservative Jobbik party and the leftist Democratic Coalition (DK) stood at 10 percent.

Five percent backed the Socialist-Párbeszéd alliance, well below the 10 percent threshold needed to get into parliament on a joint party list, and 4 percent supported the green LMP party.

As for the other non-parliamentary parties, the satirical Two-tailed Dog Party (MKKP) and radical nationalist Mi Hazánk chalked up 4 percent and 3 percent respectively, below the 5 percent threshold for seats.

Among all voters, the ruling alliance stood at 41 percent.

On the opposition side, none of the parties could attract two-digit support among all voters. Jobbik was backed by 8 percent, and DK by 7 percent. The Socialist-Párbeszéd alliance and MKKP were supported by 4 percent each. LMP garnered 3 percent and Mi Hazánk 2 percent among all voters.

Nézőpont interviewed a representative sample of 1,000 respondents over the phone between January 10 and 16.

7 out of 10 Seoul citizens favor reunification with DPRK – POLL

seoul korea

Seven out of 10 citizens living in the South Korean capital of Seoul favored reunification with the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea (DPRK), a poll showed Wednesday.

According to the survey of 2,000 Seoul citizens aged 19-64, 74.2 percent said

the reunification of South Korea and the DPRK is necessary.

It was the same as last year’s poll.

The poll was conducted by the Seoul Metropolitan Government from Nov. 25 to Dec. 3. It had plus and minus 2.2 percentage points in margin of error with a 95-percent confidence level.

Those in their 40s preferred the reunification most with 78.6 percent replying that the reunified Korea is necessary.

The lowest rate of 66.0 percent in favor came from those in their 20s.

The Korean Peninsula has been divided since the liberation from the 1910-45 Japanese colonization. The two Koreas remain in a technical state of war as the 1950-53 Korean War ended with armistice, not peace treaty.

Asked about when the reunification could be realized, 25.6 percent said it could come true within 20 years,

followed by 20.2 percent predicted the reunification within 30 years. Those who said the reunification would be impossible was 17.0 percent.

New Korean Cultural Centre opens in Budapest
Read alsoEurope’s biggest Korean cultural centre opens in Budapest

Ruling parties continues to lead ahead of opposition alliance

orbán fidesz

Press release – 52 percent of Hungarians would vote for the Fidesz-KDNP national list in an election held this Sunday, and over three million people continue to support the government’s policies. The anti-government bloc, comprising seven opposition parties, is supported by 44 percent of those promising to vote in the election, reveals a representative public opinion poll conducted by Nézőpont Intézet on behalf of Hungarian daily newspaper Magyar Nemzet.

Fidesz-KDNP would get 52 percent of the votes cast in a poll this Sunday. The government parties’ popularity has remained balanced throughout 2019, with every other active voter being their sympathiser each month. The opposition parties’ circle of supporters has been stagnating since the local elections, with variance due to the activity of each party’s voter camp only. Total combined support for the anti-government side, which includes seven opposition forces (Momentum, DK, Jobbik, MSZP-P, MKKP, LMP), would come to 44 percent in the most likely list result category. It appears that in recent months opposition parties have not been able to profit from the municipal elections’ results.

The highest ranking party within the opposition is the Momentum Movement, which would get 11 percent on the list and has no parliamentary representation in Hungary at present.

In their case, it can be seen that the mistakes made abroad by their leading politicians may have had a significant impact on voter activity. Momentum holds its virtual second place, with no reversal in party support, but has lost two percentage points in popularity compared to the last survey.

nézőpont intézet poll

Just like a month ago, apart from Momentum, the Democratic Coalition is the only other opposition party commanding two-digit support (10 percent) among those promising their turnout.

Ferenc Gyurcsány’s party is followed by Jobbik, still without a party chairman, at 9 percent.

Again, based on the size of the MSZP-P alliance voter camp (7 percent), it would not be possible to cross the 10 percent entry threshold for a joint listing of the two parties. Several opposition parties have similar concerns: the Hungarian Two-Tailed Dog Party has 4 percent support, and the LMP, which has elected a female co-chair, has 3 percent support, as does the Our Hungary Movement.

Poll: Fidesz-led alliance maintains lead

orbán

The ruling alliance of Fidesz and the Christian Democrats has maintained its lead after last month’s local election, with 52 percent of decided voters declaring their support, according to a poll by Nézőpont published on Tuesday.

Support for the liberal opposition Momentum Movement was 13 percent, while the leftist Democratic Coalition (DK) stood at 11 percent. The conservative Jobbik party was backed by 9 percent. Meanwhile, 6 percent backed the Socialist-Párbeszéd coalition — below the 10 percent threshold needed to get into parliament on a joint party list — and 3 percent supported the green LMP party.

The non-parliamentary parties, the satirical Two-tailed Dog Party and radical nationalist Mi Hazánk, chalked up 3 percent and 2 percent respectively, below the 5 percent threshold for seats.

In Budapest, Fidesz was backed by 39 percent among decided voters, Nézőpont said.

In the capital, where the joint opposition candidate won the post of mayor, Momentum was supported by 20 percent, DK by 15 percent and Socialists-Párbeszéd by 9 percent.

Outside Budapest, the ruling alliance commanded a greater lead (55 percent) over the opposition which had a combined support of 44 percent.

Nézőpont interviewed 2,300 people in person between October 14 and 27.

Local elections – International press reacts to Karácsony’s win

Mark Ruffalo, Karácsony, elections, Hungary

Last night, the local elections and the campaigns came to an end in every Hungarian region. There was a massive surprise in the capital, where Gergely Karácsony from the left party won. Not only Hungarians but international politicians and other prominent persons congratulated the new mayor of Budapest as well.

HVG reported that American actor Mark Ruffalo, international star of the Avengers movies, tweeted on his official platform that a new era is coming to Hungary.

The actor included an article by Washington Post to his post in which the writer shares details about the winning of Gergely Karácsony.

Although Ruffalo did not write Karácsony’s name in his post, undoubtedly, his post is a message to him. The American actor also stated a few weeks before that Viktor Orbán leads the country just like the president of the United States, Donald Trump does. 

24. hu reported that Michael Ludwig, mayor of Vienna, congratulated Karácsony on his official Facebook site and looks forward to working with the brand-new mayor of the Hungarian capital.

Ludwig stated that Vienna and Budapest became stronger and stronger throughout history, and now they can cooperate as well.

https://www.facebook.com/MichaelLudwig.at/photos/a.329704963873737/1325273334316890/?type=3&theater

Hungarian actor Róbert Alföldi wrote that a new world is coming with the election of Karácsony and this world leads back to Europe.

https://www.facebook.com/alfoldirobert/photos/a.1602619089971242/2533203193579489/?type=3&theater

Daily News Hungary reported about every step of the local election process. Find articles related to this topic by CLICKING HERE

Featured image: Wikimedia Commons by Gage Skidmore 

Scarlett Johansson: “I did not express my support to Budapest Mayor Tarlós for the upcoming municipal elections”

Two weeks ago, the rightist media turned up with the breaking news that the world-famous Hollywood actress, Scarlett Johansson visited the 71-year-old Lord Mayor, István Tarlós (representing FIDESZ), who runs for reelection this month.

READ MORE HERE

Local elections – Results in major Hungarian cities

local elections result

Among others, Péter Márki-Zay has been reelected as the mayor of Hódmezővásárhely with all the votes counted, according to the National Election Office.

László Botka, reelected for the fifth time as the mayor of the city of Szeged in Sunday’s local elections — this time as a joint opposition candidate — said the community of the southern Hungarian city, the country’s third biggest, were the real winners.

Botka said he did not consider running the city to be a political task, adding that he intended to serve all the residents of Szeged.

Everyone should feel at home in the city, the Socialist politician added.

He said his first task would be to consult with all municipal representatives on how they conceive of working together.

Ruling Fidesz’s László Papp attributed his reelection as the mayor of eastern Hungary’s Debrecen on Sunday to “the serious, diligent work carried out over the past five years”.

“Another breakthrough victory has been achieved,” the mayor of Hungary’s second biggest city said, noting that Fidesz’s candidates had also won in all of the city’s individual electoral districts.

He named economic growth and the maintenance of the influx of young people as his main goals for the next five years.

Papp had captured 61.84 percent of the vote with 97.08 percent of the votes counted.

Pál Veres, the newly elected opposition mayor of north-eastern Hungary’s Miskolc, on Sunday vowed to work together with “everyone who represents the interests of the city”.

“Miskolc has won,” Veres, who won 55 percent of the vote in Hungary’s fourth largest city, declared in his victory speech.

He said his campaign had been honest and committed to “working with all of Miskolc’s residents”.

“We want to build a new, beautiful city, to create a great Miskolc,” Veres said, adding that this would require the cooperation of all of the city’s residents.

Fidesz’ scandalous Borkai was re-elected as mayor of Győr. Candidates have garnered the following percentage of votes with 100 percent of the votes counted, the National Election Office reported:

  1. Zsolt Borkai (FIDESZ-CHRISTIAN DEMOCRATS) – 44.33 percent (19 312 votes)
  2. Tímea Glazer (DK-MOMENTUM-MSZP-JOBBIK-LMP) – 42.86 percent (18,671 votes)
  3. László Kovács (Civilians for Gyor) – 8.44 percent (3,677 votes)
  4. Jenő Balla (Unity for Gyor Assoc) – 4.37 percent (1,906 votes)

Local elections – Results in county seat and major city mayoral races with 54.08 pc of votes counted

local elections result

Mayoral candidates in county seats and major cities have garnered the following percentage of votes with 54.08 percent of all votes counted nationwide, the National Election Office reported:

Győr (47.92 percent of votes counted)

1. Zsolt Borkai (FIDESZ-CHRISTIAN DEMOCRATS) – 44.06 percent (8,873 votes)

2. Timea Glazer (DK-MOMENTUM-MSZP-JOBBIK-LMP) – 43.38 percent (8,736 votes)

3. László Kovacs (Civilians for Gyor) – 8.31 percent (1,673 votes)

Hódmezővásárhely (94.12 percent of votes counted)

1. Dr. Peter Marki-Zay (EVERYONE’S HUNGARY – Assoc. for a Clean Hodmezovasarhely) – 57.35 percent (12,579 votes)

2. Dr. Istvan Grezsa (Independent) – 42.65 percent (9,356 votes)

Pécs (75.71 percent of votes counted)

1. Attila Peterffy (Everyone for Pecs Association) – 53.08 percent (20,209 votes)

2. Attila Vari (FIDESZ-CHRISTIAN DEMOCRATS-OPE) – 41.29 percent (15 720 votes)

3. Dr. Jozsef Kobor (LMP) – 3.59 percent (1368 votes)

Szeged (70.37 percent of votes counted)

1. Dr. Laszlo Botka (Unity for Szeged Association) – 60.36 percent (27,764 votes)

2. Pal Nemesi (Independent) – 36.50 percent (16,788 votes)

3. Dr. Balint Szabo (Independent) – 1.82 percent (836 votes)

Debrecen (78.83 percent of votes counted)

1. Dr. Laszlo Papp (FIDESZ-CHRISTIAN DEMOCRATS) – 62.04 percent (26 891 votes)

2. Zoltan Varga (DK-MSZP-PARBESZED-SZOLIDARITY MOVEMENT) – 21.15 percent (9169 votes)

3. Csanad Abel Koszeghy (MOMENTUM-JOBBIK-LMP) – 12.15 percent (5265 votes)

Dunaújváros (80.85 percent of votes counted)

1. Tamas Pinter (GO DUNAUJVAROS! ASSOC) – 56.28 percent (8027 votes)

2. Gabor Cserna (FIDESZ-CHRISTIAN DEMOCRATS) – 41.02 percent (5851 votes)

3. Tibor Farsang (Mi Hazank-MIEP-FKGP) – 2.70 percent (385 votes)

Székesfehérvár (57.61 percent of votes counted)

1. Dr. Andras Cser-Palkovics (FIDESZ) – 60.93 percent (12,366 votes)

2. Dr. Roland Marton (DK-JOBBIK-LMP-MINDENKI MAGYARORSZÁGA-MOMENTUM-MSZP-PÁRBESZÉD) – 33.28 percent (6,754 votes)

3. Laszlo Juhasz (ANSWER INDEPENDENT CIVILIANS) – 4,17 percent (847 votes)

Sopron (86 percent of votes counted)

1. Dr. Ciprian Farkas (FIDESZ-CHRISTIAN DEMOCRATS) – 56.84 percent (10,349 votes)

2. Dr. Norbert Varga (Independent) – 38.06 percent (6930 votes)

3. Imre Gibicsár (PARBESZED) – 5.10 percent (928 votes)

Results for Budapest mayor with 92.19 pc of votes counted

tarlós vs karácsony

Candidates for Budapest mayor have garnered the following percentage of votes with 92.19 percent of all votes counted, the National Election Office reported:

1. Gergely Karácsony (MOMENTUM-DK-MSZP-PARBESZED-LMP) – 50.62 percent (317,152 votes)

2. István Tarlós (FIDESZ-CHRISTIAN DEMOCRATS) – 44.29 percent (277,502 votes)

3. Róbert Puzsér (CITIZENS IN THE CENTRE) – 4.44 percent (27,794 votes)

4. Krisztian Berki (Independent) – 0.66 percent (4,119 votes)

Opposition politicians trust in victory amid high turnout

local election votes

Opposition politicians competing in Sunday’s local elections praised the high turnout and said they trusted that this would translate into a victory for Gergely Karácsony, their joint candidate for Budapest mayor.

The opposition Párbeszéd party’s spokesman, Richárd Barabás, welcomed the high turnout in a statement, saying that opposition cooperation and their innovative campaign technologies would bring about their desired outcome.

He also said that scandals linked to the ruling Fidesz party last week had undermined “the political and moral legitimacy of the government”.

Barabás said the country and local communities would benefit if the opposition had a breakthrough in several localities, demonstrating that there was an alternative to Fidesz’s “corrupt and immoral system”.

Ágnes Kunhalmi, the head of the Socialist Party board, also welcomed the high turnout in a statement, adding, however, that it was hard to predict who would benefit.

She noted that the high turnout in last year’s general election had favoured the opposition in Budapest and Fidesz outside it.

She said the Socialists had developed considerably in the recent past and the opposition in general had done much to mobilise their voters, adding that she trusted the high participation rate would favour the opposition.

Zsolt Greczy, the Democratic Coalition spokesman, also welcomed the high turnout, adding that DK was “cautiously optimistic” that the local elections would mark a turning point in favour of the opposition.

Local elections – Polling stations close nationwide

local elections voting

Polling stations in Hungary’s 2019 local elections closed at 7pm on Sunday.

The country’s electorate, some 8.025 million voters, had the opportunity to cast their ballots at 10,278 municipal and 2,188 ethnic minority polls in 3,177 cities, towns and villages since 6am.

Voters still waiting in line to cast their ballot may still vote.

After the vote, polling committees will open the boxes and count the votes, including the portable boxes with the votes of invalid or disabled people who had indicated their wish to vote at home. Votes are totted up according to both party lists and individual candidates.

The votes will be counted at least twice and results forwarded to the local election office.

The election office is expected to publish the preliminary results of the election on Monday, although it will be clear by midnight how the various parties and candidates will have performed.

In Hungary’s eighth local ballot since the change in political system in 1990, local mayors, municipal assembly and minority representatives in public-administrative districts, as well as the mayor of Budapest and its districts, are being elected to a five-year term.

UPATE: Local elections – Turnout 47.20% at 6.30pm

local elections budapest

By 6.30pm on Sunday, 47.20 percent of the around 8.025 million eligible voters had cast their ballots in Hungary’s local elections, the National Election Office reported.

A total of 3,787,857 people went to the polls in the first twelve and a half hours, the office said.

Voter participation in Budapest stood at 49.19 percent at 6.30pm.

Five years ago, the last partial turnout figures were released at 5.30pm, with 39.82 percent of voters having cast their ballots by then.

Among the counties, turnout was the largest in western Hungary’s Vas County, at 53.82 percent, and the lowest in eastern Hungary’s Hajdú-Bihar County, at 40.79 percent.

Local mayors, municipal and minority representatives are elected in public-administrative districts, as well as the mayor of Budapest and its districts, in a first-past-the-post, single-round vote.