Hungary

The core features of coalition politics in Hungary are majority coalitions and stable governments. A small number of parliamentary parties are strongly divided both on cultural and economic cleavage lines. This does not offer much flexibility in coalition formation. Before 2010 coalitions were controlled by alternating senior parties of either conservative or left orientation, thereafter coalitions have been characterized by one-party conservative dominance. The coalitions of the left were based on more equal partnership, deeper policy consciousness, and more established party organization than the conservative coalitions. Hungary has developed in to a case of prime ministerial government built on constitutional, legal, political, and occasionally personal grounds. Secured by the constructive no-confidence vote, enjoying authority in the nomination and dismissal of ministers, being party leader, and not facing strong political rivals or institutional veto points, most prime ministers have enjoyed unquestionable power. Over the decades, governance has become increasingly centralized and politicized. The management of coalition conflicts has moved away from Parliament and cabinet to narrow circles of party political or personal nominees. Publicly available coalition agreements, with few exceptions, have not been policy-oriented and have not provided much guidance on coalition governance or conflict resolution techniques. Still, disciplined legislative and parliamentary behaviour has been common and early elections have never taken place. Government termination has rarely occurred due to policy conflicts between the coalition partners. Junior coalition parties have paid huge electoral costs for their participation in government.