Shortly after 11 a.m. earlier today, President János Áder opened the inaugural session of Hungary’s ninth freely elected National Assembly. Based on the results of the April 3 general elections, Prime Minister Orbán’s Fidesz-KDNP alliance won 135 out of 199 seats in the Hungarian parliament, while former PM Ferenc Gyurcsány’s DK holds 15; Jobbik, Momentum and MSZP each have 10; Párbeszéd and Mi Hazánk hold 6; and LMP has 5.
In his opening speech, President Áder urged MPs to say yes to representing Hungary’s national interest, to the prosperity of the country, to the security of Hungarians, and to fact-based debates and shared successes, but to say no to self-serving and short-sighted politics, to serving foreign interests, to conflicts and to lying.
President Áder also said that Hungarian voters decided on April 3 which parties and party alliances will be given parliamentary seats, who will be responsible for governing, and who will be given an opposition role. He added that the decision of the voters is politically and legally unquestionable, that everyone must respect it, and that the legitimacy of the new parliament and the future government is beyond dispute. President Áder concluded that he would propose that the National Assembly elect Viktor Orbán as prime minister of Hungary.
Following the president’s remarks, Béla Turi-Kovács, ranking member of the National Assembly, took the floor and said that Hungarian voters clearly decided that Hungary must refuse war and stand by peace.
The ranking member also said that we will hopefully remain on the side of peace in the coming years. In Europe today, there are two pro-peace leaders; "one is Pope Francis, while the other is sitting here among us, our prime minister,” Turi-Kovács said.
Members of parliament then elected László Kövér as Hungary’s next parliamentary speaker with 170 votes in favor. In his speech, House Speaker Kövér emphasized that it’s a fact that the prospects of our nation, our society and our families are better today than at any other point in time since the fall of communism.
“Today, Hungary is a strong and respectable country on an upward trajectory, providing a decent home for all its citizens, and a country that no one can ignore in European politics,” Kövér said in closing.