National Assembly (Hungary)

The National Assembly (Hungarian: Országgyűlés) is the parliament of Hungary. It is a group of 199 lawmakers chosen by voters every four years. People in Hungary vote to choose their representatives, so many different opinions can be heard.

The Assembly has groups called committees. These groups talk about new laws and watch over government leaders. There is a special court in Hungary called the Constitutional Court of Hungary. This court can decide if a law goes against the country's most important rules.

Since 1902, the National Assembly has met in the big Hungarian Parliament Building in Budapest. The people now serving in the National Assembly are called the members of the National Assembly of Hungary (2026–2030).

History

The Diet of Hungary was a group that made laws in the medieval kingdom of Hungary starting in the 1290s. It continued in later states like Royal Hungary and the Habsburg kingdom of Hungary during the Early Modern period. It did not meet regularly. There were long breaks between 1527 and 1918, and again until 1946.

In 1608, the group became bicameral, meaning it had two parts. The upper house had important nobles and church leaders. The lower house had representatives from the nobility, churches, and some cities. Only a small part of people who could vote chose these lower house members. The parliament had around 500 people in the 17th and 18th centuries.

Under communist rule, the National Assembly was the main governing body in Hungary. It mostly approved decisions made by the Communist party. It met only twice a year, and a group called the Presidential Council handled most work between meetings.

The modern, democratic National Assembly began after the end of communist rule in 1989. It kept its role as the top power in Hungary until changes in 2012. Today it is still called the Országgyűlés, but is known as the 'National Assembly' to differ from its royal past.

Historical composition of the National Assembly since 1990

The National Assembly of Hungary, also called the Országgyűlés, is the country's parliament. Since 1990, members have served for four years. The number of members changed over time — it was 386 from 1990 to 2014, and now it is 199.

Members are chosen in elections using a special voting system. Parties need to get at least 5% of the votes to win seats in the Assembly.

Speakers of the National Assembly of Hungary

Main article: List of speakers of the National Assembly (Hungary)

The National Assembly of Hungary has a leader called the Speaker. This person helps manage the work of the parliament and makes sure everything runs well. There is a list of all the people who have been Speaker, showing their names and when they served.