Hungarian Socialist Party
In the annals of post-communist transitions, few political parties have a founding story as unique and fraught with paradox as Hungary's Socialist Party, or MSZP. Born directly from the ruling communist apparatus, it undertook a remarkable transformation to become a pro-European, social-democratic force. Yet, its journey from political dominance to a struggle for relevance reflects the tumultuous shifts in modern Hungarian politics, revealing a compelling narrative of adaptation, crisis, and enduring legacy. The Hungarian Socialist Party emerged directly from the dissolution of the ruling communist party, signifying Hungary's pivotal shift towards democracy. MSZP often implemented economic policies more liberal than its conservative rivals, challenging traditional left-right political categorizations in Hungary. A series of domestic crises and external economic pressures led to a significant and prolonged decline in the party's electoral fortunes after 2010.
AI Summary
In the annals of post-communist transitions, few political parties have a founding story as unique and fraught with paradox as Hungary's Socialist Party, or MSZP. Born directly from the ruling communist apparatus, it undertook a remarkable transformation to become a pro-European, social-democratic force. Yet, its journey from political dominance to a struggle for relevance reflects the tumultuous shifts in modern Hungarian politics, revealing a compelling narrative of adaptation, crisis, and enduring legacy.
- The Hungarian Socialist Party emerged directly from the dissolution of the ruling communist party, signifying Hungary's pivotal shift towards democracy.
- MSZP often implemented economic policies more liberal than its conservative rivals, challenging traditional left-right political categorizations in Hungary.
- A series of domestic crises and external economic pressures led to a significant and prolonged decline in the party's electoral fortunes after 2010.
The Unlikely Birth of a Party
The Hungarian Socialist Party, known by its acronym MSZP, stands today as a centre-left to left-wing social-democratic and pro-European political entity in Hungary. But its story is far from typical—it didn't begin as an opposition movement, but rather as an internal metamorphosis.
In a truly unique turn of events, the MSZP was founded on October 7, 1989, as a direct successor to the Hungarian Socialist Workers' Party, or MSZMP. This was the very communist party that had governed Hungary for 33 years following the 1956 revolution. Imagine a ruling party dissolving itself, only to reform with a new democratic vision.
From Communism to Social Democracy
By the summer of 1989, the MSZMP was rapidly shedding its Marxist-Leninist skin. A faction of radical reformers, keen on steering Hungary towards a market economy, had taken control. Key among them was Rezső Nyers, an architect of earlier economic reforms, who ascended to become the de facto leader of Hungary.
At that pivotal party congress in October 1989, the MSZMP officially dissolved itself and immediately refounded as the MSZP, with Nyers at its helm. A small, more hardline 'Communist' faction, led by the former General Secretary Károly Grósz, broke away, but the transformation of the main party was complete.
This bold act, however, was not without controversy. The decision to declare MSZP a successor to the MSZMP continues to resonate in Hungarian politics even today. Many prominent MSZP politicians had, in fact, held significant positions within the old communist regime, creating a complex legacy.
A Surprising Economic Stance
Perhaps surprisingly, on economic matters, the Socialists often embraced liberal, free-market policies more enthusiastically than their conservative counterparts. While the right sometimes advocated for state intervention and ownership, MSZP pursued significant market reforms, including a strong package of austerity and privatization in 1995–96 known as the Bokros package, amidst an economic crisis.
Beyond economics, MSZP also distinguished itself by shifting social policy. They advocated for transforming state social provisions from universal subsidies—available to all citizens—to a system focused on financial and social need, aiming for more targeted support.
Internationally, the MSZP is firmly aligned with centre-left movements. It is a member of the Progressive Alliance, the Socialist International, and the Party of European Socialists. The party consistently rejects Hungarian nationalism, contrasting sharply with some of its political rivals.
The Rollercoaster of Elections
The MSZP first faced the Hungarian electorate in the 1990 elections, the nation's first truly free elections in 44 years. Despite its transformative origins, the party struggled, securing only fourth place and 33 seats in parliament.
However, under the leadership of Gyula Horn, Hungary's last communist foreign minister, the MSZP staged a dramatic comeback. In the 1994 parliamentary election, they achieved an outright majority, a stunning reversal of fortune. Horn chose to form a coalition with the liberal Alliance of Free Democrats, partly to allay concerns about a former communist party holding such power.
This move effectively broke the 'political quarantine' that other Hungarian parties had imposed on the MSZP since the change of system. By partnering with the Free Democrats, they also gained crucial support to pass their ambitious economic reforms, including the Bokros package, despite some internal party resistance.
After a period in opposition, the party returned to power in 2002, again forming a centre-left coalition with the Free Democrats. Their success continued in the 2006 elections, where they secured 43.2% of the party list votes, retaining their government.
The Decline of a Giant
The tide began to turn dramatically after 2006. The infamous Őszöd speech by then-Prime Minister Ferenc Gyurcsány, which candidly admitted to government deception, sparked widespread protests and eroded public trust. This, combined with the devastating 2008 global financial crisis, hit MSZP's popularity hard.
By 2009, Gyurcsány resigned as Prime Minister and party chairman. The European Parliament election that year saw the MSZP lose half its supporters, receiving only 17.37% of the votes. This marked the effective end of Hungary's two-party system, which had seen MSZP and Fidesz dominate for over a decade.
The 2010 election delivered a crushing defeat to the Socialist Party, which secured only 19.3% of the vote and 59 seats. While it still became the largest opposition party, the scale of the loss was unprecedented since 1990, paving the way for Fidesz to gain a supermajority.
The left-wing political landscape fractured in the wake of the 2010 defeat. Former Prime Minister Gyurcsány, after failing to reform the MSZP from within, departed with nine other MPs to establish the Democratic Coalition, further weakening the Socialist Party's parliamentary presence.
Further attempts at alliances proved fruitless. In 2014, an electoral coalition with other parties failed to win, and in the European Parliament election that same year, MSZP suffered its worst defeat since 1990, securing only 10% of the votes. This led to the resignation of the party's entire presidium.
Leadership became a revolving door, with figures like József Tóbiás, Gyula Molnár, and Bertalan Tóth taking the helm in rapid succession. The party even resorted to selling its long-standing headquarters in 2016 for financial reasons, a stark symbol of its diminishing influence.
The decline continued through the 2019 European election, where MSZP, even in alliance, managed only 6.61% of the vote. It was now outranked by both the Democratic Coalition and the emerging Momentum movement. The once-dominant party found itself grappling for relevance in a transformed political landscape.
Despite these challenges, MSZP has shown resilience through strategic cooperation in local elections, even winning mayoralties in areas where it hadn't since 1990. However, these localized successes often came at the cost of internal dissent and resignations at the local level.
Looking to the future, the party congress in 2020 approved a significant structural change. Rather than a single leader, MSZP would adopt a co-leadership model, with a man and a woman sharing the top position, mirroring similar reforms seen in other European social-democratic parties. This reflects an ongoing effort to adapt and rebuild in a challenging political climate.
Article
Hungarian Socialist Party
The Hungarian Socialist Party (Hungarian: Magyar Szocialista Párt [ˈmɒɟɒr ˈsot͡siɒliʃtɒ ˈpaːrt]), commonly known by its acronym MSZP (Hungarian: [ˈɛmɛspeː] ), is a centre-left to left-wing social democratic and pro-European political party in Hungary.
It was founded on 7 October 1989 as a post-communist evolution and one of two legal successors of the Hungarian Socialist Workers' Party (MSZMP). Along with its conservative rival Fidesz, MSZP was one of the two most dominant parties in Hungarian politics until (/wiki/2010Hungarianparliamentaryelection); however, the party lost much of its popular support as a result of the Őszöd speech, the consequent 2006 protests in Hungary, and then the 2008 financial crisis. Following the 2010 election, MSZP became the largest opposition party in parliament, a position it held until (/wiki/2018Hungarianparliamentaryelection), when it was overtaken by the far-right-turned-centre-right Jobbik.
History
Hungarian Socialist Party
Hungarian Socialist Party logo pre-2012
The MSZP evolved from the communist Hungarian Socialist Workers' Party (or MSZMP), which ruled Hungary between 1956 and 1989. By the summer of 1989, the MSZMP was no longer a Marxist–Leninist party, and had been taken over by a faction of radical reformers who favoured jettisoning the Communist system in favour of a market economy. One of its leaders, Rezső Nyers, the architect of the New Economic Mechanism in the 1960s and 1970s, was elected as chairman of a four-man collective presidency that replaced the old MSZMP Politburo. Although General Secretary Károly Grósz, who had succeeded longtime leader János Kádár a year earlier, was elected to this body, Nyers now outranked him–and was thus now the de facto leader of Hungary.
At a party congress on 7 October 1989, the MSZMP dissolved and refounded itself as the MSZP, with Nyers as its first president. A marginal "Communist" faction led by Grósz broke away to form a revived Hungarian Communist Workers' Party, now known as the Hungarian Workers' Party, the other successor of the MSZMP.
The decision to declare the MSZP a successor of the MSZMP was controversial, and still carries repercussions for both the MSZP and Hungary. Another source of controversy is that some members of the former communist elite maintained political influence in the MSZP. Indeed, many key MSZP politicians were active members or held leadership positions within the MSZMP (like Gyula Horn and László Kovács).
On economic issues, the Socialists have often been greater advocates of liberal, free market policies than the conservative opposition, which has tended to favor more state interventionism in the economy through economic and price regulations, as well as through state ownership of key economic enterprises. The MSZP, in contrast, implemented a strong package of market reforms, austerity and privatization in 1995–96, called the Bokros package, when Hungary faced an economic and financial crisis. According to researchers, the elites of the Hungarian 'left' (MSZP and SZDSZ) have been differentiated from the 'right' by being more supportive of the classical neo-liberal economic policies, while the 'right' (especially extreme right) has advocated more interventionist policies. In contrast, issues like church and state and former communists show alignment along the traditional left-right spectrum. It is also noteworthy that, according to research, the MSZP elite's positions used to be closer to voters of the SZDSZ than to their own.
Besides a more liberal approach to the economy overall, the MSZP differentiated itself from the conservative opposition through its more recent focus on transforming state social policy from a collection of measures that benefit the entire population, such as subsidies available to all citizens, to one based on financial and social need.
Besides Gyula Horn, the MSZP's most internationally recognized politicians were Ferenc Gyurcsány and László Kovács, a former member of the European Commission, responsible for taxation.
Electoral history
Hungarian Socialist Party
The MSZP faced the voters for the first time at the 1990 elections, the first free elections held in Hungary in 44 years. It was knocked down to fourth place with only 33 seats.
Nyers handed the leadership to Horn, Hungary's last Communist foreign minister. Horn led the MSZP to an outright majority at the 1994 parliamentary election. Although the MSZP could have governed alone, he opted to form a coalition with the liberal Alliance of Free Democrats (SZDSZ). He not only wanted to allay concerns inside and outside Hungary of a former Communist party holding a majority, but needed the Free Democrats' votes to get economic reforms (what became the Bokros package) past his own party's left wing. Thus the MSZP was released from a so-called "political quarantine" imposed by the other Hungarian parties; during the first five years after the change of system, the other parties cooperated to shut out the MSZP from decision-making.
After being turned out of office in (/wiki/1998Hungarianparliamentaryelection), the party was able to form a renewed centre-left coalition with the Free Democrats in (/wiki/2002Hungarianparliamentaryelection).
At the 2006 elections, MSZP won with 43.2% of party list votes, which gave it 190 representatives out of 386 in the Parliament. The MSZP was therefore able to retain its coalition government from the previous term. In earlier elections, the MSZP polled 10.89% (1990), 32.98% (1994), 32.92% (1998) and 42.05% (2002).
After the successful fees abolishment referendum, MSZP formed the first minority government of Hungary, following the SZDSZ's backing out of the coalition with a deadline of 1 May 2008.
2010s decline
On 21 March 2009 Gyurcsány announced his resignation as Prime Minister due to failure management of the economic crisis. Gordon Bajnai became the nominee of MSZP for the post of prime minister in March 2009 and he became Prime Minister on 14 April. Gyurcsány also resigned from his position of party chairman, which he had occupied since 2007.
MSZP lost half of its supporters during the European Parliament election in 2009, receiving only 17.37% of the votes and gaining four seats compared to the previous nine seats. This electoral defeat marked the end of the de facto two-party system in Hungary, which had lasted since 1998.
The Hungarian Socialist Party suffered a heavy defeat in the 2010 election (won by Fidesz with a two-thirds majority), gaining only 19.3% of the votes, and 59 seats in the parliament. Following the resignation of Ildikó Lendvai, the party's prime minister candidate Attila Mesterházy was elected Chairman of the Socialist Party. Nevertheless, MSZP became the biggest opposition party in Hungary.
The left-wing fragmented after the 2010 election; at first Katalin Szili left the MSZP to form Social Union (SZU), following the similarly significant defeated local elections in October 2010, nevertheless Gyurcsány's detachment was a much worse disaster for the Socialists. Initially, the former PM wanted to reform the party, but his goals remained in the minority. As a result, Gyurcsány, along with nine other members of the parliamentary group, left MSZP and established Democratic Coalition (DK). Thus MSZP's number of MPs reduced to 48.
The Socialist Party entered into an alliance with four other parties in January 2014 to contest the April parliamentary election. Mesterházy was elected candidate for the Prime Minister position, but the Unity alliance failed to win. After that the electoral coalition disestablished. On the 2014 European Parliament election, MSZP suffered the largest defeat since the 1990 parliamentary election, gaining third place and only 10% of the votes. After the obvious failure, Mesterházy and the entire presidium of the Socialist Party resigned.
József Tóbiás was elected leader of the Socialist Party on 19 July 2014 following the resignation of Mesterházy. He also became leader of the parliamentary group in September 2014. During his leadership, the Socialist Party won a parliamentary by-election (2014) and an important mayoral by-election (Salgótarján), however the party itself was permanently pushed back to the third place by far-right Jobbik according to the opinion polls. Tóbiás did not support the full cooperation and unification of the left-wing opposition parties against Viktor Orbán. During the MSZP party congress in June 2016, he was defeated by Gyula Molnár, a former Socialist MP and mayor, who succeeded him as party chairman. In February 2016, the party decided to sell its headquarters at Jókai Street for financial reasons. In June 2018, Bertalan Tóth was elected president in the MSZP, shortly after the party suffered its worst electoral defeat since 1990.
The party further declined in the 2019 European election, only scoring 6.61% of votes (even in alliance with Dialogue for Hungary) and being overtaken by the Democratic Coalition and Momentum. In 2019 local elections the party managed (due to cooperation with other parties) to win mayorships ir Érd and Szombathely. Also in these elections MSZP managed to win mayorships in those areas, where it never had a mayor since 1990 (e. g. Mohács).
The 2019 local election results caused resignations from the party on the local level (e. g. Szeged mayor Laszlo Botka).
In 2020, the party's congress supported a change to the party's structure. Instead of having one leader, the party would nominate two co-leaders – a man and woman (similar structure has been implemented in 2019 by the Social Democratic Party of Germany).
Ideology
Hungarian Socialist Party
In political terms, the MSZP differentiates itself from its conservative opponents mainly in its rejection of Hungarian nationalism. The party is a member of the Progressive Alliance, the Socialist International, and the Party of European Socialists (PES), and it holds a chairmanship and several vice-chairmanships in committees at the European Parliament. The MSZP is a centre-left to left-wing party, but it has historically been centrist.
Election results
National Assembly
<table><thead><tr><th>Election</th><th>Leader</th><th>SMCs</th><th>MMCs</th><th>Seats</th><th>+/–</th><th>Status</th></tr></thead><tbody><tr><td>Votes</td><td>%</td><td>Votes</td><td>%</td></tr><tr><td>1990</td><td>Rezső Nyers</td><td>504,995</td><td>10.18% (#4)</td><td>534,897</td><td>10.89% (#4)</td><td>33 / 386</td><td>New</td><td>Opposition</td></tr><tr><td>1994</td><td>Gyula Horn</td><td>1,689,081</td><td>31.27% (#1)</td><td>1,781,867</td><td>32.99% (#1)</td><td>209 / 386</td><td>176</td><td>Supermajority (MSZP-SZDSZ)</td></tr><tr><td>1998</td><td>1,332,412</td><td>29.82% (#1)</td><td>1,446,138</td><td>32.25% (#1)</td><td>134 / 386</td><td>75</td><td>Opposition</td></tr><tr><td>2002</td><td>Péter Medgyessy</td><td>2,277,732</td><td>40.50% (#1)</td><td>2,361,983</td><td>42.05% (#1)</td><td>178 / 386</td><td>44</td><td>Coalition (MSZP-SZDSZ)</td></tr><tr><td>2006</td><td>Ferenc Gyurcsány</td><td>2,175,312</td><td>40.26% (#1)</td><td>2,336,705</td><td>43.21% (#1)</td><td>190 / 386</td><td>12</td><td>Coalition (MSZP-SZDSZ) (2006-2008) (MSZP minority) (2008-2010)</td></tr><tr><td>2010</td><td>Attila Mesterházy</td><td>1,088,374</td><td>21.28% (#2)</td><td>990,428</td><td>19.30% (#2)</td><td>59 / 386</td><td>131</td><td>Opposition</td></tr><tr><td>Election</td><td>Leader</td><td>Constituency</td><td>Party list</td><td>Seats</td><td>+/–</td><td>Status</td></tr><tr><td>Votes</td><td>%</td><td>Votes</td><td>%</td></tr><tr><td>2014</td><td>Attila Mesterházy</td><td>1,317,879</td><td>26.85% (#2)</td><td>1,290,806</td><td>25.57% (#2)</td><td>29 / 199</td><td>30</td><td>Opposition</td></tr><tr><td>2018</td><td>Gergely Karácsony</td><td>622,458</td><td>11.31% (#3)</td><td>682,701</td><td>11.91% (#3)</td><td>17 / 199</td><td>12</td><td>Opposition</td></tr><tr><td>2022</td><td>Bertalan Tóth Ágnes Kunhalmi</td><td>1,983,708</td><td>36.90% (#2)</td><td>1,947,331</td><td>34.44% (#2)</td><td>10 / 199</td><td>7</td><td>Opposition</td></tr></tbody></table>
Single Member Constituencies voting consistently for MSZP
The image shows Single Member Constituencies (or SMCs) voting for MSZP in 1998, 2002, 2006 in dark red, while showing SMCs voting for MSZP in 2002 and 2006 in red. The dark red districts are considered the strongest positions of the party. Most if not all districts shown in dark red and red also voted for MSZP in 1994, a landslide victory for the party. So actually, dark red districts have an even longer uninterrupted voting history of supporting MSZP.
Consequently, MSZP SMCs won between 1998 and 2006
European Parliament
<table><thead><tr><th>Election</th><th>List leader</th><th>Votes</th><th>%</th><th>Seats</th><th>+/−</th><th>EP Group</th></tr></thead><tbody><tr><td>2004</td><td>László Kovács</td><td>1,054,921</td><td>34.30 (#2)</td><td>9 / 24</td><td>New</td><td>PES</td></tr><tr><td>2009</td><td>Kinga Göncz</td><td>503,140</td><td>17.37 (#2)</td><td>4 / 22</td><td>5</td><td>S&D</td></tr><tr><td>2014</td><td>Tibor Szanyi</td><td>252,751</td><td>10.90 (#3)</td><td>2 / 21</td><td>2</td></tr><tr><td>2019</td><td>Bertalan Tóth</td><td>229,551</td><td>6.61 (#4)</td><td>1 / 21</td><td>1</td></tr><tr><td>2024</td><td>Klára Dobrev</td><td>367,162</td><td>8.03 (#3)</td><td>0 / 21</td><td>1</td><td>−</td></tr></tbody></table>
Party leaders
Hungarian Socialist Party
<table><thead><tr><th>#</th><th>Image</th><th>Name</th><th>Entered office</th><th>Left office</th><th>Length of Leadership</th><th>Notice</th></tr></thead><tbody><tr><td>1</td><td></td><td>Rezső Nyers</td><td>9 October 1989</td><td>27 May 1990</td><td>230 days</td><td>President of the MSZMP in 1989</td></tr><tr><td>2</td><td></td><td>Gyula Horn</td><td>27 May 1990</td><td>5 September 1998</td><td>8 years, 101 days</td><td>Prime Minister 1994–98</td></tr><tr><td>3</td><td></td><td>László Kovács</td><td>5 September 1998</td><td>16 October 2004</td><td>6 years, 41 days</td><td>Minister of Foreign Affairs 2002-04</td></tr><tr><td>4</td><td></td><td>István Hiller</td><td>16 October 2004</td><td>24 February 2007</td><td>2 years, 131 days</td><td>Minister of National Cultural Heritage 2003-05, Minister of Education and Culture 2006-10</td></tr><tr><td>5</td><td></td><td>Ferenc Gyurcsány</td><td>24 February 2007</td><td>5 April 2009</td><td>2 years, 40 days</td><td>Prime Minister 2004–09</td></tr><tr><td>6</td><td></td><td>Ildikó Lendvai</td><td>5 April 2009</td><td>10 July 2010</td><td>1 year, 96 days</td><td></td></tr><tr><td>7</td><td></td><td>Attila Mesterházy</td><td>10 July 2010</td><td>29 May 2014</td><td>3 years, 323 days</td><td></td></tr><tr><td>–</td><td></td><td>László Botka (interim)</td><td>31 May 2014</td><td>19 July 2014</td><td>49 days</td><td>Mayor of Szeged since 2002</td></tr><tr><td>8</td><td></td><td>József Tóbiás</td><td>19 July 2014</td><td>25 June 2016</td><td>1 year, 342 days</td><td></td></tr><tr><td>9</td><td></td><td>Gyula Molnár</td><td>25 June 2016</td><td>17 June 2018</td><td>1 year, 357 days</td><td>Mayor of Budapest XI. 2002–10</td></tr><tr><td>10</td><td></td><td>Bertalan Tóth</td><td>17 June 2018</td><td>22 October 2022</td><td>4 years, 127 days</td><td>Male co-chair after 2020</td></tr><tr><td>11</td><td></td><td>Ágnes Kunhalmi</td><td>19 September 2020</td><td>19 October 2024</td><td>4 years, 30 days</td><td>Female co-chair</td></tr><tr><td>12</td><td></td><td>Imre Komjáthi</td><td>22 October 2022</td><td>Incumbent</td><td>3 years, 160 days</td><td>Male co-chair until 2024</td></tr></tbody></table>