Viktor Orban
The internal elections have suddenly taken on a universal scale and have become an arena of confrontation not only between the ruling party and the opposition in Hungary itself, but also between global forces. Not only relations between Budapest and Brussels, and not only internal processes in the European Union will largely depend on their outcome. Hungarian voters today also largely determine the nature of future relations between the United States, the European Union and Russia.
Polling stations opened at 06:00 and are scheduled to close at 19:00. Hungary has a single-round election system in which the party or coalition that wins the most seats gets the right to form the government.
Of the 199 seats in parliament, 106 are elected by individual constituencies, while the remaining 93 are distributed on party lists. Hungarian citizens living abroad are also eligible to vote.
Main candidates and controversies
For the first time since 2010, when the incumbent Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbán took over the leadership of the country, he has a serious opponent in the current election. And for the first time, Orban could realistically let power slip out of his hands. The Politico publication claims that before voting begins, the Tisza party, founded by his former ally and now main opponent Péter Magyar, could get 50 percent of the vote, while Orbán’s Fidesz party could get 39 percent.
The vote is being closely watched in Brussels and other European capitals. Orban’s government has long feuded with EU institutions and many European capitals.
The main line of confrontation is over support for Ukraine and relations with Russia. Hungary has repeatedly used its veto power in the EU when it comes to allocating money for Ukraine or passing another package of sanctions against Russia. Brussels does not hide its irritation with Orban’s “free thinking” and is thinking of mechanisms to limit his influence on pan-European decisions.
The most desirable “mechanism” for Brussels would be a change of power in Budapest, which the EU representatives are not even trying to hide. Brussels and other world capitals see more than just a change of power in Hungary behind the possible loss of the Fidesz party led by Viktor Orbán. Orbán calls his position “patriotic politics,” positioning it in opposition to liberal democracy. Therefore, in the democratic camp not only in Europe, but also in the United States, the defeat of the current Hungarian prime minister wants to be presented as a symbolic failure for similar movements around the world.
Based on this “geopolitical mission” of the Hungarian elections, they have attracted so much attention worldwide. Viktor Orban received support from several prominent figures of the international right, including US President Donald Trump and Vice President J.D. Vance, who traveled to Budapest shortly before the election. Marine Le Pen of France and Matteo Salvini of Italy also visited there.
Peter Magyar, meanwhile, is aligned with the European conservative mainstream, although he is not a pro-European leader in the liberal sense of the term. The Tisza party is part of the European People’s Party, a center-right group in the European Parliament, and he has promised to restore Hungary’s relations with the EU and NATO.
The arena of confrontation between the U.S. and the EU
Although EU leaders did not come to the Hungarian capital and did not openly support Magyar, they repeatedly made it clear that Viktor Orbán’s re-election would lead to a reduction in EU funding for Hungary and other restrictive measures for Budapest. Among other things, Brussels is seriously considering giving up its “veto right” in European affairs in order to deprive Orbán of his main “trump card” if he regains power in Hungary.
At the same time, Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk and German Chancellor Friedrich Merz, as well as a number of other senior European leaders, openly supported Magyar.
But these their efforts may be outweighed by Donald Trump’s “gift” just before Sunday’s vote. The US president promised to provide Hungary with economic support if Prime Minister Viktor Orban needed it. This came just hours before the country’s crucial election.
“My administration stands ready to use the full economic might of the United States to strengthen Hungary’s economy, as we have done for our great allies in the past, if Prime Minister Viktor Orban and the Hungarian people ever need it,” Trump wrote in a message on Truth Social ahead of Sunday’s election.
“We are happy to invest in the prosperity that will come from Orban’s continued leadership!” – said Trump, who repeatedly endorsed Orban during the campaign.
Where all this will lead to, and what the reaction in Brussels, Washington and other capitals will be to the outcome of the Hungarian elections, we will see tomorrow.
