Overall, the election results show the extent to which the election conditions were tailored to Orbán's Fidesz, Hungary's only large political party. Of the party's 199 members of parliament, 106 were elected in single-member constituencies based on the first-past-the-post system. In many constituencies, Fidesz candidates only won with a relative majority, with the combined outcomes for the opposition candidates significantly higher in come cases. But the parties would have had to join forces and put up a single joint candidate in order to beat Fidesz -- and they were unable to reach such an agreement in many electoral constituencies.
Overall, the election results show the extent to which the election conditions were tailored to Orbán's Fidesz, Hungary's only large political party. Of the party's 199 members of parliament, 106 were elected in single-member constituencies based on the first-past-the-post system. In many constituencies, Fidesz candidates only won with a relative majority, with the combined outcomes for the opposition candidates significantly higher in come cases. But the parties would have had to join forces and put up a single joint candidate in order to beat Fidesz -- and they were unable to reach such an agreement in many electoral constituencies. For some observers, including G.M. Tam, a leftist philosopher in Budapest and former anti-communist civil rights activist, Orbán's landslide victory didn't come as a surprise. "In recent years, elections all over Europe have been decided based on the so-called immigration question," Tamás told DER SPIEGEL. He says that consensus over a common well-being and common interest is disappearing all over Europe and that an increasing number of groups in society are placing their own interest over those of minorities like foreign citizens or refugees. "Orbán is a strong and talented representative of this trend," Tamás says. "That's why he wins elections. Everyone in Hungary knows that he's corrupt and that he governs poorly, and yet many people still vote for him because they consider it important that he protects them from immigrants and minorities like the Roma." [...]
All of which makes his reserved appearance on election night seem disingenuous at best. Particularly since Orbán explicitly said a few weeks ago that he planned to deal rigorously with his opponents and critics -- including nongovernmental organizations. In his speech on the Hungarian national holiday on March 15, Orbán said: "After the election, we will of course seek amends -- moral, political and legal amends."
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