THE HUNGARIAN ELECTORAL SYSTEM

Public Acts

The provisions of the Hungarian electoral law fall under three categories in terms of the source of law:

1.    Act XX of 1949, the Constitution of the Republic of Hungary governs the representational form of the exercise of power, the basic principles of the elections and suffrage as a basic political right.
2.    The substantive law provisions governing the electoral system are laid down in Act XXXIV of 1989 on the general parliamentary elections and Act LXIV of 1990 on the election of representatives and mayors of local governments. Act III of 1998 regulates the issues of national referendum and popular initiative as a form of direct democracy.
3.    The provisions of Act C of 1997, an independent procedural code, govern the rules of the electoral procedure – for each type of elections.

The conditions required for franchise

The positive pre-conditions of suffrage in Hungary are as follows:

·  Hungarian citizenship 
·  age of consent 
·  effective attachment to the territory of the state (the residence therein)
·  as far as suffrage is concerned, the staying at the territory of the country on election day.

Reasons for exclusion under the Hungarian electoral law

Pursuant to the Constitution of the Republic of Hungary, no suffrage shall be granted to persons:

·  under guardianship limiting or excluding the ability to act;
·  under the effect of a final verdict of injunction from public affairs;
·  under imprisonment;
·  under forced medical treatment ordered, in effect, in a criminal procedure.

The structure of the Hungarian parliamentary election system

The Hungarian Electoral Act (Act XXXIV of 1989) has institutionalised a two-vote, mixed electoral system, applying both the system of majority/single-member constituencies and the proportionate/list-based system.

The system of parliamentary elections has three constituents:

·  176 single-member constituencies: legislators have divided the country’s territory into 176 single-member constituencies, each of which to elect a single member of parliament
-  based on the absolute majority of votes in the first election round or
-  based on the relative majority of votes in the second election round.
·  20 district constituencies: along with single-member constituencies, the law has institutionalised 20 regional constituencies, corresponding to the territory of the 19 counties and Budapest. Seats are proportionately distributed on these lists, by employing the Hagenbach-Bischoff formula and the two-third rule.
·  National (compensatory) list: this is an adjusting element in the electoral system. 58 seats are distributed according to the surplus votes obtained by the various parties.

The 5-percent threshold is an important element of the Hungarian electoral system; this essentially means that only the parties having obtained at least 5 percent of the valid votes cast on a national basis for the regional lists shall obtain seats at the regional and the national lists.

The parliamentary election system is party-based. In the single-member constituencies, the proposals by 750 voters are required for putting up a candidate. Only parties can put up a regional list, which requires the party in question to put up a candidate in one-fourth of the single-member constituencies within the regional constituency, or in at least 2 single-member constituencies. The putting up of at least 7 regional lists is required in order to put up a national list.

The parallel existence of the two historical types of electoral systems, i.e. the majority (single-member constituencies) and the proportionate (district lists) systems, is an inherent part of the Hungarian parliamentary election system. That means that Hungarian voters vote for both individual candidates and party lists, whereas the national list is of an indirect, compensatory nature, essentially taking the surplus votes into account.

The electoral bodies

The electoral procedure at the parliamentary elections


1.   The electoral committees
 
The following electoral committees operate with respect to the parliamentary elections:

             ·    the National Electoral Committee

             ·    regional electoral committees

             ·    parliamentary single-member constituency electoral committees

             ·    polling station committees.

The committees verify nominations of candidates, register individual candidates (PSMC), regional lists (REC) and national lists (NEC). They approve the data content of the ballot-paper of the constituency (PMSC, REC), and decide on the objections submitted under the relief procedure.

At the electoral districts, the polling station committees conduct the voting and ensure the lawful administration of the voting. They establish the result of the voting at the electoral district.

Summarising the electoral district results established by the polling station committees, the PMSC, the REC and the NEC establish and publish the election results at single-member constituency, regional constituency and national levels. The electoral committees decide on the objections raised against the local, regional or national election results.


2.   The composition of the electoral committees:

a) National Electoral Committee (NEC)

The National Electoral Committee is the highest-level electoral committee. It is the superior custodian of the lawfulness and the fairness of the elections. 5 permanent members and alternate members
The five members of the OVB and the alternate members are elected by Parliament. The Minister of the Interior puts forward a proposal concerning the members, taking into account the proposals of the parties.
Delegated members are delegated by parties putting up a national list.
The mandate of the elected members and the members delegated by the parties forming a parliamentary group following the elections lasts until the next general elections. The mandate of members delegated by parties not forming a parliamentary group expires when the election results are finally established

b) Regional electoral committee (REC)

3 permanent members and alternate members
The three members of the regional electoral committee and the required number of alternate members elected by the capital and county general assembly. The head of the regional electoral office makes a proposal concerning such members.
The parties putting up a list in the county or in Budapest each delegate a further member into the committee. The mandate of delegated members expires when the election results are finally established.

c) Parliamentary single-member constituency electoral committee (PSMCEC)

Its three members are elected by the Budapest or county general assembly, at the proposal of the head of the regional electoral office.
The parties putting up a candidate in the single-member constituency and the independent candidates each delegate a further member into the committee. The mandate of the delegated members expires when the election results are finally established.

d) The polling station committee (PSC)

Its three members and the required number of alternate members are elected by the local municipal corporation. 

Delegated members are delegated by the parties putting up an individual candidate in the constituency and by the independent candidates.

The elected and the delegated members have the same rights and obligations!

At the electoral offices operating alongside the electoral committees, civil servants (municipal employees on local and county levels and the staff of the Ministry of Interior and of its Central Office on the national level) perform the operative functions concerning the elections.

3.   The register of voters
 
The register of voters serves the purpose of the registration of the right to vote. Following the call for election, the head of the local electoral office shall compose, by electoral district, and keep updated the register of citizens with a right of voting, based on the records of the central population-registration (continuously maintained regardless of the elections) and on the records of major citizens without right to vote.
 
The register of voters shall include the persons with a right of voting whose place of residence or, failing that, whose temporary place of residence is within the electoral district.
 
The register of voters shall be published for a period of eight days 60 days prior to election day. Voters shall be informed of their inclusion in the register of voters by means of sending an announcement no later than on the 58th day prior to election day. Along with the announcement, voters shall receive the proposal coupon, to be cast, in their discretion, for one of the persons intending to enter as a candidate in the constituency.


4.   Proposal and nomination
 
Candidates shall be proposed on the proposal coupon. Candidates shall be proposed by voters having a domicile in the constituency. A voter may propose a single candidate until the 23rd day before election day. Proposal coupons may be collected without the harassment of voters at any place except as provided for in the law.
 
At single-member constituencies, 750 proposal coupons shall be collected in order to enter as a party or an independent candidate. Candidates shall be announced with the competent electoral committee no later than the 23rd day prior to election day, by turning in the proposal coupons.
 
Parties able to put up individual candidates in one-fourth of the single-member constituencies within the district constituency (the county) or in at least two single-member constituencies, may put up a regional list to be registered with the regional electoral committee.
 
Parties putting up a regional list in seven regional constituencies are entitled to put up a national list, to be registered with the National Electoral Committee.

5.   The election campaign
 
The period of the election campaign shall be between the call for the elections and 0:00 a.m. the day before election day. The election campaign is prohibited after 0:00 a.m. the day before election day until the completion of the casting of votes (the period of the campaign ban). The influencing of the voting intentions of voters shall be deemed a violation of the campaign ban, including, in particular the following:

1.   services rendered free of charge to voters by candidates or nominating organisations,
2.   the distribution of party badges, banners or objects containing the photograph or the name of a candidate,
3.   the placing of election posters
4.   the provision of information suitable for the influencing of voting intentions in electronic form or by any other means.
 
Until the end of the election campaign, nominating organisations and candidates may produce posters without permission and place them, subject to certain basic restrictions, at any place.
 
Electoral meetings are public; the order is to be maintained by the organiser of the meeting.
 
During the campaign period, broadcasters may publish political advertisements for nominating organisations and candidates with equal conditions.


6.   Budgetary support 

Each nominating organisation putting up a candidate for the parliamentary elections shall receive a central funding commensurate with the number of candidates nominated. The support granted for independent candidates shall be identical with that of party candidates.
 
The amount of funds to be appropriated nationally for budgetary support shall be established by Parliament following the closing of nomination. The support shall only be used for material expenses and shall be accounted for within 30 days after the elections. An additional amount of maximum HUF 1 million shall be spent on each candidate.

7.   Voting (in brief)
 
The period of voting shall be from 6:00 a.m. to 7:00 p.m. on election day. Voters shall vote in person and – except for the cases of voting with a certificate – at the polling station at the voter’s place of residence. No votes may be cast by mail or at the embassies of the Republic of Hungary.
 
Due to the mixed nature of the electoral system, voters vote for individual candidates and lists. The national list is an indirect list of a compensatory nature, from which seats are allocated in the proportion of surplus votes; voters may not directly vote for the national list.

8.   The establishment of result
 
The polling station committee shall count the votes and make official reports, separately on single-member and list votes. It shall forward the official reports to the single-member constituency electoral committee and the regional electoral committee.
 
The parliamentary single-member constituency electoral committee shall summarise the votes on the basis of the official reports of the polling station committees and establish the constituency election result, which it shall record in official reports and forward to the National Electoral Committee.
 
On the basis of the official reports of the regional electoral committees, the National Electoral Committee shall establish the 5-percent threshold and the regional lists to obtain a seat. It shall immediately inform the regional electoral committees thereof, which establish the regional election results and record it in official reports.
 
On the basis of the official reports of the single-member constituency and regional electoral committees, the National Electoral Committee shall summarise the surplus votes and establish the candidates on the national lists to obtain a seat.
 
Relief may be applied for against the decisions of the committees.

9.   Legal remedies
 
Pursuant to the general rules concerning legal remedies, the electoral relief – with the exception of recourses against the decisions of the OVB brought otherwise than as a forum of appeal – shall be of two instances, with the electoral committee and a regular court acting, respectively, as the first-instance and the second-instance authority. The electoral procedure has the following forum of appeal:

-    the competent parliamentary single-member constituency or regional electoral committee shall decide on the objections submitted against the decisions of the polling station committee with respect to the conducting of the voting, the maintenance of the lawful order of the voting and concerning the disputes arising during the voting. The competent forum depends on whether the disputed decision was made in connection with the single-member constituency or the list voting. Decisions made by local electoral committees performing the functions of a polling station committee at settlements having a single electoral district shall be treated identically with those of the polling station committees.

-    The competent regional electoral committee shall decide on objections submitted against decisions of a parliamentary single-member constituency electoral committee brought otherwise than as a forum of appeal.

-    The National Electoral Committee shall decide on objections submitted against decisions of the regional electoral committee brought otherwise than as a forum of appeal.

-    The Metropolitan Court or the County Courts shall decide on objections submitted against decisions of the parliamentary single-member constituency electoral committee or the regional electoral committee brought as a forum of appeal.

-    The Supreme Court shall decide on objections submitted against decisions of the National Electoral Committee in any issue. No recourse shall be made against the decision of the Supreme Court.

Complaints and objections against a decision of the polling station committee shall be made with the electoral committee competent to assess such objections, whereas any other objection shall be submitted to the electoral committee making the injurious decision.