Voter registration deemed unconstitutional

Hungary’s Constitutional Court has thrown out legislation that was to introduce mandatory voter registration, a move sharply criticized by the political opposition as a requirement infringing on basic rights and favoring the current governing parties.

The requirement, attached to a new constitution that was prepared by Viktor Orbán’s government in 2011 and took effect as of January 1st, 2012, was discarded by the Constitutional Court on ‘formal, procedural’ grounds. The Court’s statement says it will review the content of the registration requirement in a separate inquiry.

According to the Court, “Parliament, acting in its capacity to create a constitution, is also bound by procedural and legislative rules. Laws that break these guidelines are void.”

Ever since the idea brought up, opposition parties and civic groups have said mandatory registration prior to voting would infringe on citizens’ fundamental rights and lead to a lower turnout favoring the ruling Fidesz party. PM Orbán argued that the law would help the participation of hundreds of thousands of voters, many of them granted Hungarian citizenship in the past year, who live and work abroad.

Critics of the legislation welcomed the decision of the Constitutional Court but leaders of the governing coalition made it clear that their parliamentary majority would pass the requirement of voter registration into law once again.