Hungarians voted on Sunday in a parliamentary election that could bring down Prime Minister Viktor Orbán after 16 years in power. With 77% of votes counted, Magyar's Tisza party won the election with over 53% support to 38% for Fidesz, according to multiple reports. Orbán conceded defeat after the election, congratulated the victorious party, and said they will serve from opposition. In a victory speech, Magyar said 'We have taken back our country'.
Most polls favored Péter Magyar and his Tisza party over Fidesz ahead of the election. According to the latest opinion poll, 55 percent of voters who have already decided would vote for Tisza this year, while Fidesz gets 35 percent in the same poll. Just two days before the election in Hungary, opposition leader Péter Magyar increased his lead in the opinion polls, according to official sources. Hungary's three most reliable pollsters point to a 'huge lead' for Tisza, according to election specialist Róbert László. The 11-point difference between Tisza and Fidesz in the Medián poll exceeds the margin of error, research indicates, and this is the second consecutive Medián poll showing Tisza in the lead. Several other polls in recent weeks have shown Tisza not only catching up with Fidesz, but pulling ahead, according to research findings.
The opposition would 'stop at nothing to seize power'.
With 45% of votes counted, Tisza is projected to win 132 of 199 parliamentary seats, multiple reports indicate. The result may give Tisza a two-thirds supermajority in parliament, according to major media. Magyar says a two-thirds supermajority is needed to reverse Fidesz's constitutional changes. Magyar promises a change of regime, reset of EU relations, and end to close relations with Russia. He pledged to rebuild Hungary's relationships with the EU and NATO. However, Magyar is against EU membership for Ukraine and sending weapons to Ukraine, creating uncertainty about his foreign policy direction and whether his government will adopt a more pro-Western stance or maintain a conservative approach to Ukraine.
Orbán has been seen as Europe's Donald Trump, according to multiple reports. He is highly valued by US President Donald Trump, who called on Hungarians to vote for him, multiple reports indicate. Orbán has vetoed €90bn in aid to Ukraine, angering European partners, according to major media. The European Parliament termed Hungary a 'hybrid regime of electoral autocracy' in 2022. Fidesz has systematically shifted power away from institutions, making power changes difficult, multiple reports indicate. Recent revelations showed a top Orban government member shared EU discussions with Moscow, according to major media. Hungary has leaked information to Russia from EU meetings, according to Washington Post.
Do not give in to 'Fidesz pressure and blackmail'.
Many Hungarians are dissatisfied with the stagnating economy and increased living costs, multiple reports indicate. According to a survey by Medián, 70 percent of Hungarian voters say that in 2024 they are worse off than the year before. Right after the 2022 elections, huge welfare cuts were made alongside tax increases to tackle the budget deficit, research shows. Claims about 2025 being a fantastic year ring hollow after hearing the same for 2023 and 2024, with the economic crisis yet to be overcome, research indicates. According to www.politico.eu, Szabolcs Dull described how inflation, the weak forint and all this data trickles down to the level of the voters.
Magyar rose to prominence in 2024 after a presidential pardon scandal involving a child abuser's accomplice, according to major media. One particularly grave scandal within Fidesz in February was an early sign of trouble, research indicates. Key figures from Fidesz — including a president, a justice minister and a high-ranking clergyman — were revealed to have played leading roles in pardoning an aide to a pedophile director of a children's home, research shows. Fidesz has ridden out many scandals over Orbán's policies, and his wealthy friends and family, according to research. The pedophile pardon scandal shook Fidesz to its core, research indicates. Fidesz has long built its campaigns around stressing traditional family values, while attacking the 'ungodly' West, research shows.
We will serve from opposition.
Magyar accused the government of corruption in a Facebook post and interview. He won a seat in the 2024 European Parliament elections with Tisza finishing second, according to major media. Hungarians' discontent is growing over the cost of living, frustration with rich elites, and a pardon issued in a high-profile pedophile scandal, research indicates.
Orbán claimed the opposition would 'stop at nothing to seize power' ahead of the vote. Magyar appealed to voters not to give in to 'Fidesz pressure and blackmail'. The government has promised that '2025 will be a fantastic year,' according to research. The crowd chanted 'Russians, go home' during Magyar's speech, multiple reports indicate.
We have taken back our country.
Foreign Minister Espen Barth Eide said the election is a victory for democracy and a setback for illiberal forces in Europe.
Viktor Orbán's Fidesz party has won Hungarian elections for the past 18 years, research indicates. Two recent polls suggest the political tide is significantly shifting against Prime Minister Orbán, according to research.
Inflation, the weak forint and all this data trickles down to the level of the voters.
The potential supermajority for Tisza raises questions about whether it will achieve the two-thirds threshold needed to reverse Fidesz's constitutional changes, which could reshape Hungary's political landscape. Specific reforms Magyar might implement to address economic hardships remain unclear, as does how Orbán and Fidesz will operate as an opposition party after decades in power.
The election outcome could significantly impact Hungary's EU and NATO relations, though the extent of this shift depends on Magyar's ability to deliver on his promises of resetting ties while maintaining his stance on Ukraine. Orbán's long dominance of Budapest politics has infuriated the EU establishment, research indicates, and his alignment with Russian President Vladimir Putin on the need for the West to keep out of the Ukraine war, along with his alignment with U.S. President-elect Donald Trump's MAGA-style mantras on national sovereignty, has positioned Hungary as a provocative actor in European politics.
Economic reforms under Magyar's leadership will need to address the widespread dissatisfaction with living costs and the stagnating economy that drove voter discontent. The evidence supporting allegations of information leaks to Russia from EU meetings, as reported by Washington Post, remains a point of scrutiny that could influence future diplomatic relations.