The two main contenders in the legislative elections this Sunday in Hungary, Prime Minister Viktor Orbán and the opposition leader and favorite for victory, Peter Magyar, have deposited your vote for elections characterized by records of citizen participation.
As of 3:00 p.m., 66% of Hungarian voters had already cast their vote, according to data published by the country’s Electoral Commission on its website. This is about thirteen percentage points above the legislative elections four years ago at that time (53.59%) and everything seems to indicate that the trend will continue until the polls close, at 7:00 p.m.
In the capital, Budapest, participation is already close to 70% (69.4%). Its mayor, also the opposition Gergely Karácsony, has called on voters to “make history” using “the pen that waits in the voting booths.”
“The result will depend on a few votes”
Magyar has insisted on the importance of participation because “there will be electoral districts where the result will depend on a few votes“, he stated after casting his ballot before declaring himself absolutely convinced that his Tisza party is going to win the elections: “No one seriously thinks that Tisza is going to lose, nor does Hungary.” In line with his campaign, Magyar, more pro-European than his rival and head of Government, has framed the elections in a fight “between East and West.”
Orbán, who has also voted, has assured that he will congratulate Magyar if he wins the elections before calling for a vote for his Fidesz party, because “it is the safest option.” In recent hours, the prime minister has received messages of encouragement from allies such as Donald Trump Jr, the eldest son of the president of the United States, or the Israeli minister for the Diaspora, Amichai Chikli.
“We must respect the decision of the people“added Orbán in the midst of the warnings that both candidates have launched about the possibility of electoral fraud in the elections. Shortly after, the prime minister celebrated the extraordinary provisional participation on Facebook: “Let no patriot stay at home.”
According to Tisza, around 60 complaints have been received on its website for alleged irregularities committed by supporters of Orbán’s Fidesz. The Fidesz MEP, Csaba Domotor, has confirmed that his party is aware of 639 cases of electoral irregularities and there are 74 pending police complaints.
