After all the votes cast in Hungary’s parliamentary elections were counted, Prime Minister-elect Péter Magyar’s Tisza party has gained three more seats in parliament, Politico reports.
The latest results strengthen Magyar’s position, allowing him to overturn the changes to the country’s laws introduced by outgoing Prime Minister Viktor Orbán. The votes counted gave Tisza 141 of the 199 seats in parliament. That gives the party more than two-thirds of the seats needed to enact constitutional reforms.
Orbán’s Fidesz was second after the votes were counted, winning just 52 seats in parliament.
Magyar wrote on the X on the 18th of April: “Here are the results of the 2026 parliamentary election: an unprecedented majority, an unprecedented mandate — and, at the same time, an unprecedented responsibility.” Magyar could be sworn in as prime minister in mid-May.
A supermajority for Magyar’s party could be beneficial for the rapid implementation of democratic reforms needed to unlock 17 billion euros in European Union funds for Hungary.
These were frozen amid growing concerns about the rule of law due to decisions taken by the Orbán government.
Currently, the conditions require Hungary to comply with 27 EU-mandated rules that will introduce changes to the public procurement system, increase the independence of the judiciary, and promote academic freedom.
Magyar and his incoming cabinet ministers met in Budapest over the weekend with Bjoern Seibert, head of the office of European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen. The meeting was aimed at outlining guidelines for releasing funds and discussing the 90 billion euro loan to Ukraine that Orbán had vetoed.
The EC said on the 19th of April that the meeting was an opportunity to start practical discussions in good time on the way forward and the possibilities for unblocking funds frozen over concerns about corruption and the rule of law in Hungary.
Time is running out for the Hungarians at the moment. Ten billion euros of the funds earmarked for Hungary are linked to the ER’s post-pandemic recovery fund and will no longer be available after the 31st of August. The EC has hinted that the first loan payment to Kyiv could be made at the end of May if Magyar keeps his promise and lifts Hungarian veto.
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