Péter Magyar won Hungary’s parliamentary elections on Sunday, ending Viktor Orbán’s 16-year rule as prime minister. Magyar's Tisza Party secured 138 of the parliament’s 199 seats, giving him a two-thirds supermajority and the power to amend the constitution.
Key Takeaways
Péter Magyar won Hungary’s parliamentary elections on Sunday, ending Viktor Orbán’s 16-year rule as prime minister. Magyar's Tisza Party secured a supermajority of 138 seats in the parliament and vowed to rebuild ties with the EU and NATO.
Magyar, a 45-year-old lawyer and former Orbán loyalist, campaigned on an anti-corruption platform. He vowed to rebuild Hungary's ties with the European Union and NATO, root out corruption and cronyism, and restore checks and balances. According to The Guardian, Magyar said he would pursue those who 'plundered, looted, betrayed, indebted, and ruined' his country.
Orbán conceded defeat in a tearful speech to his supporters less than three hours after polls closed. His rule was marked by control of state media, gerrymandering of constituencies, and the erosion of the rule of law. Magyar's victory was driven in part by young voters mobilizing against Orbán’s government.
The EU has frozen billions of dollars' worth of funding for Hungary due to concerns over democratic values under Orbán's leadership. The election result is expected to lead to a rollback of laws that helped transform Hungary into an 'illiberal democracy.' Magyar said he was ready to support the €90bn EU loan for Ukraine as long as Hungary did not take part, similar terms agreed by Orbán last December.
According to Reuters, Hungary's rejection of right-wing nationalist Viktor Orban after 16 years in power is a clear shot in the arm for its domestic markets. The outgoing prime minister's self-styled 'illiberal democracy' not only left the Hungarian economy in a precarious state but also clashed with basic EU democratic principles, triggering a series of vetoes on EU-wide policy and some 18 billion euros ($21.12 billion) in frozen EU funds to Budapest.
Orbán's public embrace of Moscow on issues from Ukraine to energy and foreign policy complicated the EU's rapid rearmament to counter the Russian military threat to its East since the Ukraine invasion in 2022. His ouster comes despite, and some say partly because of, U.S. President Donald Trump's explicit endorsement.
Peter Magyar, whose upstart centre-right Tisza party has won a supermajority giving him power to reverse Orban's constitutional changes, will not solve Hungary's problems overnight. Battles lie ahead with Brussels over budgets, frozen funds and the speed of reforms, and relations with Ukraine will need careful handling.
The sense of relief around EU capitals—that the multiple frustrations of the Orbán period may be passing at last—was clear on Monday. With traders eyeing a possible Budapest move toward euro membership, Hungary's forint surged to its best levels against the single currency in four years, 10-year Hungarian government borrowing costs fell by half a percentage point to their lowest since 2024, and the stock market gained almost 5%.
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