Hungarian Alliance loses seats in Slovak municipal elections

The Hungarian Alliance (Magyar Szövetség) suffered significant losses in the recent Slovak local and regional municipal elections. Following the vote, the party is expected to hold 37 regional council seats, a decrease from the 54 seats held after the 2022 elections. This represents a decline of approximately 32 percent.

The party experienced losses in every affected county, with the most notable reductions occurring in Košice and Nitra counties, where it lost six and five seats respectively. While several prominent mayors in Hungarian-populated areas, such as those in Komárno, Dunajská Streda, and Levice, retained their positions, the party overall secured fewer mayoralties than in the previous cycle.

Péter Pandy, Chairman of the National Council of the Hungarian Alliance, attributed the difficult campaign atmosphere to malice and defamation. Other factors cited include ideological divisions within the Hungarian community and demographic shifts. The election results come ahead of next year's parliamentary elections, where the party must meet a 5 percent threshold to enter parliament.