Because of the economic recovery and the end of the occupation in 1955, the protective power of the Soviet occupiers was lost to the KPÖ. The party lost a main pillar of support and was shaken by internal crisis. Like many other communist parties around the world, the KPÖ had oriented itself towards Marxism-Leninism of the Stalinist brand, and has closely allied itself at this point with the line of the Soviet Communist Party. The party's failure to condemn the bloody suppression of the 1956 Hungarian uprising led to a wave of withdrawals from the party. On 10 May 1959, the KPÖ lost representation in the National Council, receiving 142,578 votes, 3.3% of the total tally and thus missing the 4% election threshold to receive seats.