Most–Híd
Most–Híd (Slovak pronunciation: [ˈmɔst ˈɦiːt], Hungarian: [ˈmost ˈhiːd]; from the Slovak and Hungarian words for "bridge") was an inter-ethnic political party in Slovakia. Its programme calls for greater cooperation between the country's Hungarian minority and ethnic Slovak majority. It was one of four parties in the Fico III government coalition, but lost all its seats in the National Council in the 2020 Slovak parliamentary election.
Bridge Most–Híd | |
|---|---|
| Leader | László Sólymos |
| Founded | 30 June 2009 |
| Dissolved | 2 October 2021 |
| Split from | Party of the Hungarian Coalition |
| Merged into | Aliancia - Szövetség |
| Membership (2020) | 5,516 ( 31)[1] |
| Ideology | Liberal conservatism[2][3] Hungarian minority interests[3][4] Pro-Europeanism[5] |
| Political position | Centre[6] to centre-right[7] |
| European affiliation | European People's Party |
| European Parliament group | European People's Party |
| Colours | Orange |
| Website | |
| http://www.most-hid.sk/ | |
The party was formed in June 2009 by dissidents from the Party of the Hungarian Coalition (SMK-MKP), which they accused of being too nationalistic. Most–Híd seeks to offer an alternative to ethnic politics by promoting inter-ethnic cooperation. Led by the SMK-MKP's former chairman Béla Bugár, the party claimed to have an electorate that is two-thirds ethnic Hungarian and one-third ethnic Slovak. The party remerged with SMK-MKP and a smaller Hungarian minority party (Unity) in late 2021 to form the Alliance.
History
The party was established on 30 June 2009 by Béla Bugár, Gábor Gál, László A. Nagy, Tibor Bastrnák and Zsolt Simon, who had previously left the Party of the Hungarian Coalition (SMK-MKP). Béla Bugár, who had also been the president of his former party for 10 years, was elected its president. It was established as an inter-ethnic Hungarian-Slovak alternative to the Party of the Hungarian Coalition. This commitment was cemented by electing Rudolf Chmel, an ethnic Slovak, as one of the party's vice presidents representing.
The party sought to represent the interests of the ethnic Hungarians while working together with the Slovaks.[8] According to Peter Huncik about 60 to 65 percent members were Hungarians, while 35 to 40 were Slovaks.[9] This programme and political ideology manifested itself in the party first taking part in the centre-right Radičová-government between 2010 and 2012, and also cooperating with the centre-left Fico government in minority issues in the next electoral cycle.
Polls from mid-September 2009 gave Most–Híd between 3 and 5.6 percent of the vote.[10] An opinion poll by Focus in May 2010 gave Most–Híd 5.6% of the vote.[11] In the 2010 election, the party received 8.12% of the popular vote, and thus won fourteen seats in the National Council. This, however, included four seats for Civic Conservative Party politicians running within the party's list of candidates. At the same time, Most–Híd's main rival, SMK-MKP, fell short of the 5% threshold and thus did not gain any seats.
In 2010, Most–Híd entered the four-party government of Iveta Radičová, and sought to advance its agenda, including in language rights, citizenship, agriculture and environmental policy. The government, however, turned out to be unstable and finally collapsed during October 2011, leading to snap elections. After months of steady polling between 6 and 9 percents, the party received 6.89% of the popular vote in the 2012 elections, winning 13 seats. As in 2010, SMK-MKP failed to reach the required threshold, leaving Most–Híd as the only parliamentary party representing the interest of the Hungarian minority in Slovakia.
In the 2014 European elections, Most–Híd came in eighth place nationally, receiving 5.83% of the vote and electing 1 MEP.[12]
In the 2016 Slovak parliamentary election, Most–Híd received 6.50% of the vote – 11 seats – and joined Fico's Third Cabinet as a coalition partner.
Election results
National Council
| Election | Votes | % | Seats | +/– | Government |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2010 | 205,538 | 8.12 (#5) | 14 / 150 | Coalition | |
| 2012 | 176,088 | 6.89 (#4) | 13 / 150 | 1 | Opposition |
| 2016 | 169,593 | 6.50 (#7) | 11 / 150 | 2 | Coalition |
| 2020 | 59,174 | 2.05 (#13) | 0 / 150 | 11 | Extra-parliamentary |
European Parliament
Presidential
| Election | Candidate | First round | Second round | Result | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Votes | % | Votes | % | |||
| 2014 | Pavol Hrušovský | 63,298 | 3.30 | Lost | ||
| 2019 | Béla Bugár | 66,667 | 3.10 | Lost | ||
Footnotes
- ^ https://www.minv.sk/swift_data/source/statna_komisia_pre_volby/30_annual_report/ar2019/VS_42171229_I_20200730.pdf[bare URL PDF]
- ^ Stískala, Jozef (2012), "Party System of Slovak Republic and its Stability after 2010 and 2012 Elections in Comparative Perspective", Slovak Journal of Political Sciences, 12 (3): 233, doi:10.2478/sjps-2013-0007, S2CID 54032331
- ^ a b Nordsieck, Wolfram (2020). "Slovakia". Parties and Elections in Europe. Retrieved 4 March 2020.
- ^ Ladislav Cabada; Vít Hloušek; Petr Jurek (23 January 2014). Party Systems in East Central Europe. Lexington Books. p. 89. ISBN 978-0-7391-8277-2.
- ^ most-hid-regiony.sk, Strana Most - Híd a Európska ľudová strana (PDF) (in Slovak), retrieved 29 May 2017
- ^ , Friends of Slovakia, archived from the original on 4 March 2016, retrieved 11 March 2012
- ^ "Most-Híd agrees to talk, centre-right coalition in sight". Spectator.sme.sk. 9 March 2016. Retrieved 29 January 2019.
- ^ Kommentar posten (30 June 2009). "Neue Partei der "Ungarischen Koalition" – Slowakei – derStandard.at " International". Derstandard.at. Retrieved 15 October 2011.
- ^ Stefan Bos (12 June 2010). "Slovakia Votes Amid Scandals, Nationalist Tensions". Budapest: .voanews.com. Retrieved 15 October 2011.
- ^ Kommentar posten. "Umfragen: Regierungspartei Smer verliert – Slowakei – derStandard.at " International". Derstandard.at. Retrieved 15 October 2011.
- ^ "The Slovak Spectator: Focus poll finds that parliamentary elections would end in stalemate". Spectator.sme.sk. 21 May 2010. Retrieved 15 October 2011.
- ^ . Archived from the original on 28 May 2014. Retrieved 18 May 2017.
External links
- Most–Híd official website