President of Hungary: Legitimacy of new parliament, government ‘beyond dispute’

The legitimacy of the new national assembly and the incoming government is beyond dispute, President János Áder said opening the inaugural session of parliament on Tuesday.

On April 8, having seen the high turnout in the election before learning the results, the leaders of the parties that will now be in opposition had expressed the same view, Áder said.

The president said the decision made by voters in the election must be respected by everyone, arguing that this was the fundamental rule of democracy.

To draw the conclusions of the election, Áder suggested that the National Election Committee and the parliamentary committee in charge should review the election procedure and, if need be, propose changes to the electoral law.

This election season saw a record 23 parties field a national list, Áder said. All parties concerned received at least 153 million forints (EUR 486,231) in state funding.

This raises the question whether Hungary should return to previous regulations “to avoid some people turning this celebration of democracy into a business”.

The president thanked organisers and voters for their engagement.

Áder proposed that parliament should re-elect Viktor Orbán, leader of the Fidesz party, as prime minister.

On the topic of the European Union, the president said certain EU leaders “seem to have lost their way”.