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This year’s Hungarian election has been marked by an acrimonious campaign that saw incumbent right-wing prime minister Mr Orban speaking out against immigration and the European Union’s refugee policy. If Mr Orban achieves a strong win today, he could feel empowered by the voters’ choice to put more muscle into an anti-EU Central European alliance, which opposes to a deeper integration of the bloc and a shared responsibility of the hospitality of refugees reaching the European Union. Opinion polls released in the run up to the vote put his party Fidesz well ahead his adversaries. But pollsters warned that the surprisingly high voting turnout registered may threaten Mr Orban’s victory.

Peter Kreko, Director of think tank Political Capital, said: “High turnout means, most probably, less mandates for Fidesz than in the previous term”. The National Election Office reported a surprisingly high turnout, which at 3pm today amounted to 53.6 per cent of the population with voting rights. Dominik Hejj, a Hungarian-Polish politologist in Hungary, tweeted out pictures and videos of the masses queuing up to vote. He said: “Even more people. The police shut down two streets, water was brought in and the voters were divided into two queues depending on their addresses. It’s all young people.” In central London, Hungarians expats queued for hundreds of metres in the rain to vote, some waiting for more than two hours.

GETTY Hungary election results: Opposition leader Ferenc Gyurcsany and PM Viktor Orban

Prime Minister Orban also went to cast his ballot at his local polling station in Budapest this morning with his wife Aniko Levai. He told reporters: “I tried to come early. The campaign continues until the ballot boxes are closed. “I will take part in mobilising the voters. Not only are we selecting parties and a Government, but our own futures.” Polling stations will close at 7pm local time (6pm GMT). The vote counting is set to begin soon after. SEE BELOW FOR LIVE UPDATES

GETTY Hungary election results: Mr Orban voted earlier today

12.06am UPDATE Viktor Orban has declared victory after nearly all of the results were announced, and the Fidesz leader is expected to maintain his super-majority. In a statement to his supporters, Mr Orban said: “We created the opportunity to defend Hungary. A great battle is behind us. We have achieved a decisive victory.” Preliminary results suggest that the Fidesz-KDNP alliance is on course to win 133 seats out of 199.

11.50pm UPDATE Far-right leaders from across Europe congratulated Viktor Orban on his election result. Geert Wilders, the leader of the Dutch Freedom Party, said on Twitter: “Congratulations Viktor Orban with this excellent result. A well deserved victory!” A leading member of Germany’s AfD party Beatrix von Storch said: “Big congratulations Viktor Orban! A bad day for the EU, a good day for Europe.” And France’s far-right leader of the Front National Marine Le Pen tweeted: “The inversion of values and mass immigration promoted by the EU have once again been rejected.”

11.28pm UPDATE The leader of Hungarian Socialist Party Gyula Molnár has resigned following defeat. In a statement he said: ”We regard ourselves responsible for what happened, (and) we have acknowledged the decision of voters." Orban won a third straight term in power at the election, and his party may also retain its two-thirds majority in parliament.

11.10pm UPDATE The leader of the far-right Jobbik, Gábor Vona, has announced he will resign, following his party’s defeat. He said: “Once again Fidesz has sadly won.” He added he will keep his promise to resign if the election was lost and will stand down tomorrow. He also said the party will continue the work it started in 2010, as an opposition force to Fidesz.

10.45pm UPDATE Mr Orban thanked "all the people who prayed for us and prayed for me personally", his wife and the party volunteers in his victory speech. He added: "This has been a decisive win... in the future we are going to be able to defend our mother country" He then led the crowd in singing the anthem of the 1948 revolution.

10.40pm UPDATE Mr Orban has declared election victory. He began his speech outside Fidesz headquarters saying "We have won." He then went on congratulating to voters for turning out to vote. He said: "Thank you for having placed your faith in us; thank you for having stuck with us"

GETTY Hungary election results: Fidesz supporters are celebrating Mr Orban's victory

10.22pm UPDATE Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban's ruling Fidesz party looks set to be re-elected on Sunday for a third successive term with a strong mandate, as preliminary results show Fidesz possibly gaining a two-thirds majority in parliament. With 74.6 percent of votes counted, National Election Office data projected Fidesz winning 134 seats in the 199-seat parliament. Nationalist Jobbik was projected to win 26 seats, with the Socialists in third place with 20 lawmakers.

10.10pm UPDATE The National Election Office has released the first official results. Mr Orban's Fidesz Party is projected to win two-thirds of the majority in the Hungarian parliament with 134 seats out of 199. The Hungarian Socialist party has received 11.85 per cent of the votes counted so far. Nationalist Jobbik party is projected to win 27 seats.

9.58pm UPDATE Hungarian Deputy Prime Minister Zsolt Semjen announced that PM Mr Orban will address the public soon, as the results of Sunday's election come in. Mr Semjen thanked voters who turned out in unexpectedly high numbers for the vote, which could give right-wing nationalist Mr Orban a third successive term in power.

9.55pm UPDATE Zoltán Kész, an Independent candidate supported by the opposition, has already conceded his defeat and congratulated to his opponent, Hungarian Azonnali website reported. Despite the National Election Office is yet to release the first preliminary result, Mr Kész said he has been defeated by Fidesz candidate Péter Ovádi.

9.40pm UPDATE Unofficial results are already being published on Hungarian news websites. The website Index, citing party data, says that ruling party Fidesz has proved to be very popular in the countryside, winning more voters than in 2014, when Mr Orban triumphed in the country. But it lost many votes in the capital city, Index reported. Official government site AboutHungary endorsed Index’s forecasts, saying that Fidesz and their Christian Democratic ally, the KDNP, are expected to win 116 out of 199 seats in Hungary’s National Assembly.

GETTY Hungary election results: Fidesz party vice chairman said he expects a 'sizeable majority'

9.25pm UPDATE Hungarian government's blog reported Fidesz' vice chairman Szilárd Némethsaying saying that, without knowing the election results, he expects the ruling party to retain a "sizeable majority".

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9.05pm UPDATE Hungary's National Election Office said it expects to release preliminary results of Sunday's election around 9pm GMT, later than earlier thought, as hundreds of people are still queuing to vote in Budapest. The head of the office, Ilona Palffy, told private broadcaster ATV that turnout in two districts was much higher than anticipated. Voters were not allowed to join queues at polling stations after 5pm GMT, but some polling stations stayed open to allow those already in line to cast their ballots.

GETTY Hungary election results: People are still waiting in line to vote in Budapest

9.00pm UPDATE Hungarian news website HVG released the first partial and unofficial results. HVG claimed that opposition parties are in the lead in at least four electoral districts, which are: Budapest – Csepel: Szabolcs Szabó (Együtt) leads against Szilárd Németh of Fidesz; Budapest – 15th Electoral District: Ágnes Kunhalmi (MSZP-P) leads against Fidesz; Budapest VIII: Dezső Hiszékeny (MSZP-P) reportedly won already; Érd – Pest County: László Csőszik (MSZP-P) is leading against András Aradszki of Fidesz.

GETTY Hungary election results: Preliminary results will be released after 9pm GMT

8.45pm UPDATE A banner has appeared on a balcony located in Budapest's eleventh district, where thousands of people who arrived at the polling station before the official closing time are still queuing waiting to vote. The banner reads: "Thank you for voting." Ilona Pálffy of the National Election Office confirmed that 2,500 are still in line to vote at this station. She also recognized that the delay is a problem that her Office must resolve for future elections. The first preliminary results will be released only after this polling station will be closed.

TWITTER Hungary election results: A banner thanking people for voting appeared in Budapest

8.30pm UPDATE The turnout could be a crucial factor of Hungary's election 2018. Here's the voter turnout of the country's elections since 1990: 2018: 68 per cent (interim data) 2014: 61.8 per cent 2010: 64.4 per cent 2006: 67.8 per cent 2002: 73.5 per cent 1998: 56 per cent 1994: 68 per cent 1990: 65 per cent

8.05pm UPDATE News website Index is predicting that Mr Orban will retain a reduced but stable majority in Parliament. Index, despite recognising that this is just a projection, forecasted the following seat count in the 199 member Parliament: FIDESZ: 116 JOBBIK: 34 MSZP-P: 22 DK: 12 LMP: 11 Independent: 2 Együtt: 1 German minority list: 1

GETTY Hungary election results: First official projections are expected to be released after 9.30pm GMT

8pm UPDATE Mr Orban’s spokesman Zoltán Kovács told The Guardian that a two-thirds parliamentary majority is not a necessary benchmark. He added: “If it’s a convincing majority, that’s going to be enough.” He also said that the high turnout is a sign that “Hungarian democracy is alive and ticking”. Meanwhile, there are still approximately 2,500 people at a polling station in Budapest's eleventh district waiting to vote.

7.50pm UPDATE Hungarian National Election Office said they expect to publish preliminary results around 7.30pm GMT. 7.45pm UPDATE PM Orban's opponents have been cheering the high turnout in the Hungarian parliamentary election. Socialist spokeswoman Bernadett Budai was quoted as saying by national news agency MTI: "We are convinced that high turnout definitely reflects...that people want a change in government." A high turnout in the 2002 election saw Mr Orban confined to the opposition for eight years.

GETTY Hungary election results: A very high turnout could threaten PM Orban's parliamentary majority

7.35pm UPDATE Most polling stations have now been closed, and the vote count is set to begin. The election day has been marked by a very high turnout that could threaten Viktor Orban's parliamentary majority. Interim data at 1630 GMT showed voter turnout at 68.13 percent, exceeding final turnout in the past three elections.

Opposition activists’ election watch party in front of parliament, under heavy police watch, kicks off with concert. Theme, predictably, is freedom. #Hungary pic.twitter.com/Qcv1oNuG23 — Lili Bayer (@liliebayer) April 8, 2018

7.30pm UPDATE Opposition activists have been gathering in front of the Hungarian parliament in a tent to wait for results since 6pm GMT, Politico correspondent Lili Bayer reported. She said that there is "heavy police presence in the area".

GETTY Hungary election results: Gergely Gulyas said Fidesz is unlikely to win a two-thirds majority

7.20pm UPDATE Fidesz group leader Gergely Gulyás thanked Hungarians for the high turnout, which shows that "Hungarian democracy is strong", official website AboutHungary.hu reported. He added: "We thank all those who have voted, this way the next government can have a strong legitimacy. "It may very well be the highest turnout ever. "The parliament of Hungary will then be especially strong."

GETTY Hungary election results: Opposition activists are reportedly gathering in front of parliament

7.00pm UPDATE Ruling Fidesz party lawmaker Gergely Gulyas said that it is unlikely that today's vote will result in a two-thirds parliamentary majority. He said: "Theoretically everything is still possible as we don't know the data yet ... but in Hungary a two-thirds victory is possible if neither side loses more than 10 districts and there is a difference of at least 20 percent between the winner and the runner-up". Mr Gulyas added: "I consider this unlikely. I think this is outside the category of reality."

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