Róbert Sasvári

Róbert Sasvári has been a member of the National Election Commission (NVB) since 2010, initially as a Fidesz-KDNP delegate, and in October 2022 was elected chairman of the newly reconstituted body. While still an ordinary NVB member, in a case heard on election day, April 3, 2022, he personally proposed cutting a 500,000-forint fine imposed on Fidesz politician Péter Hoppál — for illegally removing an opposition campaign display — by 96%, down to 20,000 forints; meeting minutes show Sasvári initially proposed an even smaller amount, 10,000 forints, which the committee voted down. The episode only came to light after he was elected NVB chairman in October 2022. As chairman, Sasvári's NVB has repeatedly rejected opposition- and civil-society-initiated referendum questions: in 2026 it blocked a referendum initiative on direct presidential elections, ruling it amounted to a disguised constitutional amendment, and separately rejected an initiative aimed at barring Fidesz-KDNP from future elections. Under Sasvári, the NVB has thus combined leniency toward a violation by a governing-party politician with a consistent pattern of closing off referendum paths unfavorable to the government.