Constitution:
18 August 1949, effective 20 August 1949, revised 19 April 1972; 18
October 1989 revision ensured legal rights for individuals and
constitutional checks on the authority of the prime minister and
also established the principle of parliamentary oversight; 1997
amendment streamlined the judicial system
Legal system:
rule of law based on Western model
Suffrage:
18 years of age; universal
Executive branch:
chief of state: Ferenc MADL (since 4 August 2000)
head of government: Prime Minister Peter MEDGYESSY (since 27 May
2002)
cabinet: Council of Ministers elected by the National Assembly on
the recommendation of the president
elections: president elected by the National Assembly for a
five-year term; election last held 6 June 2000 (next to be held by
June 2005); prime minister elected by the National Assembly on the
recommendation of the president
note: to be elected, the president must win two-thirds of
legislative vote in the first two rounds or a simple majority in the
third round
election results: Ferenc MADL elected president; percent of
legislative vote - NA% (but by a simple majority in the third round
of voting); Peter MEDGYESSY elected prime minister; percent of
legislative vote - NA%
Legislative branch:
unicameral National Assembly or Orszaggyules (386 seats; members
are elected by popular vote under a system of proportional and
direct representation to serve four-year terms)
election results: percent of vote by party (5% or more of the vote
required for parliamentary representation in the first round) -
Fidesz/MDF 48.70%, MSzP 46.11%, SzDSz 4.92%, other 0.27%; seats by
party - Fidesz 164, MSzP 178, MDF 24, SzDSz 20
elections: last held 7 and 21 April 2002 (next to be held NA April
2006)
Judicial branch:
Constitutional Court (judges are elected by the National Assembly
for nine-year terms)
Political parties and leaders:
Alliance of Free Democrats or SzDSz [Gabor KUNCZE]; Christian
Democratic People's Party or KDNP [Laszlo VARGA, chairman];
Hungarian Civic Alliance or Fidesz-MPP [Jozsef SZASER, chairman];
Hungarian Democratic Forum or MDF [Ibolya DAVID]; Hungarian
Democratic People's Party or MDNP [Erzsebet PUSZTAI, chairman];
Hungarian Justice and Life Party or MIEP [Istvan CSURKA, chairman];
Hungarian Socialist Party or MSzP [Laszlo KOVACS, chairman];
Hungarian Workers' Party or MMP [Gyula THURMER, chairman]
Political pressure groups and leaders:
NA
International organization participation:
ABEDA, Australia Group, BIS, CE, CEI, CERN, EAPC, EBRD, ECE, EU
(applicant), FAO, G- 9, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICC, ICCt, ICFTU, ICRM,
IDA, IEA, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, IOM, ISO, ITU,
MINURSO, NAM (guest), NATO, NEA, NSG, OAS (observer), OECD, OPCW,
OSCE, PCA, PFP, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNFICYP, UNHCR, UNIDO, UNIKOM,
UNMIBH, UNMIK, UNOMIG, UNU, UPU, WCL, WCO, WEU (associate), WFTU,
WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTrO, ZC
Diplomatic representation in the US: chief of mission: Ambassador Andras SIMONYI chancery: 3910 Shoemaker Street NW, Washington, DC 20008 consulate(s) general: Los Angeles and New York FAX: [1] (202) 966-8135 telephone: [1] (202) 362-6730