Party Formation and Constitutional Change in Hungary

After 1956, attempts to control through mobilization were effectively abandoned, and this allowed the steady development of interests and groups under Kádár’s soft dictatorship, leading to an incipient civil society. The Hungarian Democratic Forum emerged from this movement to lead the country following the 1990 elections. Other parties and groups arose, basing themselves on somewhat different values or appealing to specific segments of Hungarian society, but they were brought together in the opposition round table. Key elements in the confrontation between the communists and the opposition round table included the timing of elections and the mechanism for selecting the state president, and tripartite negotiations set the country on a new course. Subsequently, a plethora of parties has emerged, as further institution-building continues the process of transition.