{"id":1880116,"date":"2026-04-13T06:01:21","date_gmt":"2026-04-13T03:01:21","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/?p=1880116"},"modified":"2026-04-13T06:01:21","modified_gmt":"2026-04-13T03:01:21","slug":"hungary-peter-magyars-election-win-heralds-thaw-in-eu-ties","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/?p=1880116","title":{"rendered":"Hungary: Peter Magyar’s election win heralds thaw in EU ties"},"content":{"rendered":"

[analyse_image type=”featured” src=”https:\/\/static.dw.com\/image\/76757796_6.jpg”]<\/p>\n

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https:\/\/p.dw.com\/p\/5C4Qb<\/span><\/div>\n<\/section>\n
Peter Magyar (C) has won a landslide victory in Hungarian electionsImage: Denes Erdos\/AP Photo\/picture alliance<\/small><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n
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Hungarian<\/a> voters turned out in force on Sunday to deliver a landslide victory to pro-European candidate Peter Magyar,<\/a> who has pledged to turn the country away from its far-right, authoritarian course under Prime Minister Viktor Orban<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Magyar’s center-right Tisza party is set to gain 138 seats in Hungary’s 199-seat parliament, giving it five seats more than the two-thirds needed to push through the reforms the 45-year-old former Orban loyalist<\/a> promised on the campaign trail.<\/p>\n

The victory came despite Orban’s control of Hungary’s public media, gerrymandering of voting districts that required Tisza to gain an estimated 5% more votes than Orban’s Fidesz party and efforts both by European far-right parties and the US<\/a> to urge voters to retain the government in power.<\/p>\n

Turnout reached almost 80%, according to the National Election Office\u00a0\u2014 a record number in any vote in post-communist Hungary.<\/p>\n

\"Viktor
Orban conceded defeat before supporters in BudapestImage: Attila Kisbenedek\/AFP<\/small><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

What has Peter Magyar promised?<\/h2>\n

In a speech to supporters following his landslide victory, Magyar reiterated campaign promises<\/a> to rebuild ties with Brussels and NATO, which were badly eroded during Orban’s rule, and vigorously fight the corruption that also flourished under the populist leader.<\/p>\n

“With the two-thirds majority allowing us to amend the constitution, we will restore the system of checks and balances,” Magyar said.<\/p>\n

“We will join the European Public Prosecutor’s Office and guarantee the democratic functioning of our country. We will never again allow anyone to hold free Hungary captive or to abandon it,” he said.<\/p>\n

“Tonight, truth prevailed over lies. Today, we won because Hungarians didn’t ask what their homeland could do for them \u2014 they asked what they could do for their homeland. You found the answer. And you followed through,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n

Many in the crowd chanted “Europe, Europe” during his speech.<\/p>\n

Among other things, Magyar has pledged to carry out reforms that could potentially unlock billions in European Union funding, frozen over concerns in Brussels about Orban’s dismantling of the rule of law and repression of media freedom. He has said he also wants Hungary to adopt the euro as currency.<\/p>\n

Some diplomats and analysts say, however, that the new government must first demonstrate concrete results from its reform drive before the release of the funds, which would deliver a much-needed boost to the country’s nearly stagnant economy.<\/p>\n

Magyar’s stance on LGBTQ+ rights, which were gravely undermined by Orban,<\/a>\u00a0is also unclear, as he said little about the issue during his campaign \u2014 a move observers said was aimed at keeping conservative voters on side. He has, however, said that he supports\u00a0equality of all before the law.<\/p>\n

European leaders, Ukraine welcome Magyar victory<\/h2>\n

Magyar’s win has been hailed by many leaders in the EU and Europe\u00a0who hope that the change in government\u00a0will lead not only to internal reforms in Hungary but also a radical change in policy toward Ukraine.<\/p>\n

Although\u00a0Magyar, like Orban, rejects sending arms to Ukraine and opposes the country’s quick EU integration, he is unlikely to repeat his predecessor’s vituperative rhetoric toward Kyiv.<\/a><\/p>\n

Orban repeatedly used his veto to frustrate the\u00a0EU’s efforts to support Kyiv<\/a> in its war against Russia’s full-scale invasion<\/a> and was one of the few leaders within the bloc to\u00a0maintain close ties to Russian President Vladimir Putin. He also\u00a0refused\u00a0to end Hungary’s dependence on Russian energy imports, which help finance Russia’s illegal war.<\/p>\n

This Moscow-friendly approach was also rejected by many in Hungary, and chants of\u00a0“Ruszkik haza!\u201d or “Russians go home!\u201d \u2014 a phrase used widely during Hungary’s 1956 anti-Soviet revolution \u2014 were widely heard in Budapest as Orban’s defeat became clear.<\/p>\n

European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen\u00a0hailed Magyar’s victory\u00a0on X in English and Hungarian, saying “Europe’s heart is beating stronger in Hungary tonight” as the results were announced.<\/p>\n

German Chancellor Friedrich Merz<\/a> addressed Magyar\u00a0on social media, saying “”I am looking forward to working with you.\u00a0“Let’s join forces for a strong, secure and, above all, united Europe.”<\/p>\n

Later, at a press conference, Merz said that with the result,\u00a0“Hungary has sent a very clear signal against right-wing populism across the whole world,” adding that democratic \u200csocieties are obviously\u00a0still resilient \u200cto \u200bRussian propaganda.<\/p>\n

French President Emmanuel Macron posted on X that “France welcomes this victory for democratic participation, for the Hungarian people’s commitment to the values of the European Union, and for Hungary in Europe.”\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n

“Today Europe wins and European values win,” Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez said on X, congratulating Hungarian citizens on “historic elections”.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy<\/a> also congratulated Magyar\u00a0on his “resounding victory.”<\/p>\n

\u00a0“We are ready for meetings and joint constructive work for the benefit of both nations, as well as peace, security, and stability in Europe,” Zelenskyy said in a post on X.<\/p>\n

Ukraine has also lifted an advisory\u00a0for its citizens warning against travel to neighboring Hungary after the results were announced.<\/p>\n

\u00a0The advisory was issued\u00a0last month after Hungary detained seven employees of Ukraine’s state-owned Oschadbank<\/a>while they were transporting cash between banks in Austria and Ukraine.<\/p>\n

Edited by: Louis Oelofse<\/em><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/article>\n

\n

Hungarian<\/a> voters turned out in force on Sunday to deliver a landslide victory to pro-European candidate Peter Magyar,<\/a> who has pledged to turn the country away from its far-right, authoritarian course under Prime Minister Viktor Orban<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Magyar’s center-right Tisza party is set to gain 138 seats in Hungary’s 199-seat parliament, giving it five seats more than the two-thirds needed to push through the reforms the 45-year-old former Orban loyalist<\/a> promised on the campaign trail.<\/p>\n

The victory came despite Orban’s control of Hungary’s public media, gerrymandering of voting districts that required Tisza to gain an estimated 5% more votes than Orban’s Fidesz party and efforts both by European far-right parties and the US<\/a> to urge voters to retain the government in power.<\/p>\n

Turnout reached almost 80%, according to the National Election Office\u00a0\u2014 a record number in any vote in post-communist Hungary.<\/p>\n

\"Viktor
Orban conceded defeat before supporters in BudapestImage: Attila Kisbenedek\/AFP<\/small><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

What has Peter Magyar promised?<\/h2>\n

In a speech to supporters following his landslide victory, Magyar reiterated campaign promises<\/a> to rebuild ties with Brussels and NATO, which were badly eroded during Orban’s rule, and vigorously fight the corruption that also flourished under the populist leader.<\/p>\n

“With the two-thirds majority allowing us to amend the constitution, we will restore the system of checks and balances,” Magyar said.<\/p>\n

“We will join the European Public Prosecutor’s Office and guarantee the democratic functioning of our country. We will never again allow anyone to hold free Hungary captive or to abandon it,” he said.<\/p>\n

“Tonight, truth prevailed over lies. Today, we won because Hungarians didn’t ask what their homeland could do for them \u2014 they asked what they could do for their homeland. You found the answer. And you followed through,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n

Many in the crowd chanted “Europe, Europe” during his speech.<\/p>\n

Among other things, Magyar has pledged to carry out reforms that could potentially unlock billions in European Union funding, frozen over concerns in Brussels about Orban’s dismantling of the rule of law and repression of media freedom. He has said he also wants Hungary to adopt the euro as currency.<\/p>\n

Some diplomats and analysts say, however, that the new government must first demonstrate concrete results from its reform drive before the release of the funds, which would deliver a much-needed boost to the country’s nearly stagnant economy.<\/p>\n

Magyar’s stance on LGBTQ+ rights, which were gravely undermined by Orban,<\/a>\u00a0is also unclear, as he said little about the issue during his campaign \u2014 a move observers said was aimed at keeping conservative voters on side. He has, however, said that he supports\u00a0equality of all before the law.<\/p>\n

European leaders, Ukraine welcome Magyar victory<\/h2>\n

Magyar’s win has been hailed by many leaders in the EU and Europe\u00a0who hope that the change in government\u00a0will lead not only to internal reforms in Hungary but also a radical change in policy toward Ukraine.<\/p>\n

Although\u00a0Magyar, like Orban, rejects sending arms to Ukraine and opposes the country’s quick EU integration, he is unlikely to repeat his predecessor’s vituperative rhetoric toward Kyiv.<\/a><\/p>\n

Orban repeatedly used his veto to frustrate the\u00a0EU’s efforts to support Kyiv<\/a> in its war against Russia’s full-scale invasion<\/a> and was one of the few leaders within the bloc to\u00a0maintain close ties to Russian President Vladimir Putin. He also\u00a0refused\u00a0to end Hungary’s dependence on Russian energy imports, which help finance Russia’s illegal war.<\/p>\n

This Moscow-friendly approach was also rejected by many in Hungary, and chants of\u00a0“Ruszkik haza!\u201d or “Russians go home!\u201d \u2014 a phrase used widely during Hungary’s 1956 anti-Soviet revolution \u2014 were widely heard in Budapest as Orban’s defeat became clear.<\/p>\n

European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen\u00a0hailed Magyar’s victory\u00a0on X in English and Hungarian, saying “Europe’s heart is beating stronger in Hungary tonight” as the results were announced.<\/p>\n

German Chancellor Friedrich Merz<\/a> addressed Magyar\u00a0on social media, saying “”I am looking forward to working with you.\u00a0“Let’s join forces for a strong, secure and, above all, united Europe.”<\/p>\n

Later, at a press conference, Merz said that with the result,\u00a0“Hungary has sent a very clear signal against right-wing populism across the whole world,” adding that democratic \u200csocieties are obviously\u00a0still resilient \u200cto \u200bRussian propaganda.<\/p>\n

French President Emmanuel Macron posted on X that “France welcomes this victory for democratic participation, for the Hungarian people’s commitment to the values of the European Union, and for Hungary in Europe.”\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n

“Today Europe wins and European values win,” Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez said on X, congratulating Hungarian citizens on “historic elections”.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy<\/a> also congratulated Magyar\u00a0on his “resounding victory.”<\/p>\n

\u00a0“We are ready for meetings and joint constructive work for the benefit of both nations, as well as peace, security, and stability in Europe,” Zelenskyy said in a post on X.<\/p>\n

Ukraine has also lifted an advisory\u00a0for its citizens warning against travel to neighboring Hungary after the results were announced.<\/p>\n

\u00a0The advisory was issued\u00a0last month after Hungary detained seven employees of Ukraine’s state-owned Oschadbank<\/a>while they were transporting cash between banks in Austria and Ukraine.<\/p>\n

Edited by: Louis Oelofse<\/em><\/p>\n<\/div>\n

Hungarian<\/a> voters turned out in force on Sunday to deliver a landslide victory to pro-European candidate Peter Magyar,<\/a> who has pledged to turn the country away from its far-right, authoritarian course under Prime Minister Viktor Orban<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Magyar’s center-right Tisza party is set to gain 138 seats in Hungary’s 199-seat parliament, giving it five seats more than the two-thirds needed to push through the reforms the 45-year-old former Orban loyalist<\/a> promised on the campaign trail.<\/p>\n

The victory came despite Orban’s control of Hungary’s public media, gerrymandering of voting districts that required Tisza to gain an estimated 5% more votes than Orban’s Fidesz party and efforts both by European far-right parties and the US<\/a> to urge voters to retain the government in power.<\/p>\n

Turnout reached almost 80%, according to the National Election Office\u00a0\u2014 a record number in any vote in post-communist Hungary.<\/p>\n

In a speech to supporters following his landslide victory, Magyar reiterated campaign promises<\/a> to rebuild ties with Brussels and NATO, which were badly eroded during Orban’s rule, and vigorously fight the corruption that also flourished under the populist leader.<\/p>\n

“With the two-thirds majority allowing us to amend the constitution, we will restore the system of checks and balances,” Magyar said.<\/p>\n

“We will join the European Public Prosecutor’s Office and guarantee the democratic functioning of our country. We will never again allow anyone to hold free Hungary captive or to abandon it,” he said.<\/p>\n

“Tonight, truth prevailed over lies. Today, we won because Hungarians didn’t ask what their homeland could do for them \u2014 they asked what they could do for their homeland. You found the answer. And you followed through,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n

Many in the crowd chanted “Europe, Europe” during his speech.<\/p>\n

Among other things, Magyar has pledged to carry out reforms that could potentially unlock billions in European Union funding, frozen over concerns in Brussels about Orban’s dismantling of the rule of law and repression of media freedom. He has said he also wants Hungary to adopt the euro as currency.<\/p>\n

Some diplomats and analysts say, however, that the new government must first demonstrate concrete results from its reform drive before the release of the funds, which would deliver a much-needed boost to the country’s nearly stagnant economy.<\/p>\n

Magyar’s stance on LGBTQ+ rights, which were gravely undermined by Orban,<\/a>\u00a0is also unclear, as he said little about the issue during his campaign \u2014 a move observers said was aimed at keeping conservative voters on side. He has, however, said that he supports\u00a0equality of all before the law.<\/p>\n

Magyar’s win has been hailed by many leaders in the EU and Europe\u00a0who hope that the change in government\u00a0will lead not only to internal reforms in Hungary but also a radical change in policy toward Ukraine.<\/p>\n

Although\u00a0Magyar, like Orban, rejects sending arms to Ukraine and opposes the country’s quick EU integration, he is unlikely to repeat his predecessor’s vituperative rhetoric toward Kyiv.<\/a><\/p>\n

Orban repeatedly used his veto to frustrate the\u00a0EU’s efforts to support Kyiv<\/a> in its war against Russia’s full-scale invasion<\/a> and was one of the few leaders within the bloc to\u00a0maintain close ties to Russian President Vladimir Putin. He also\u00a0refused\u00a0to end Hungary’s dependence on Russian energy imports, which help finance Russia’s illegal war.<\/p>\n

This Moscow-friendly approach was also rejected by many in Hungary, and chants of\u00a0“Ruszkik haza!\u201d or “Russians go home!\u201d \u2014 a phrase used widely during Hungary’s 1956 anti-Soviet revolution \u2014 were widely heard in Budapest as Orban’s defeat became clear.<\/p>\n

European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen\u00a0hailed Magyar’s victory\u00a0on X in English and Hungarian, saying “Europe’s heart is beating stronger in Hungary tonight” as the results were announced.<\/p>\n

German Chancellor Friedrich Merz<\/a> addressed Magyar\u00a0on social media, saying “”I am looking forward to working with you.\u00a0“Let’s join forces for a strong, secure and, above all, united Europe.”<\/p>\n

Later, at a press conference, Merz said that with the result,\u00a0“Hungary has sent a very clear signal against right-wing populism across the whole world,” adding that democratic \u200csocieties are obviously\u00a0still resilient \u200cto \u200bRussian propaganda.<\/p>\n

French President Emmanuel Macron posted on X that “France welcomes this victory for democratic participation, for the Hungarian people’s commitment to the values of the European Union, and for Hungary in Europe.”\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n

“Today Europe wins and European values win,” Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez said on X, congratulating Hungarian citizens on “historic elections”.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy<\/a> also congratulated Magyar\u00a0on his “resounding victory.”<\/p>\n

\u00a0“We are ready for meetings and joint constructive work for the benefit of both nations, as well as peace, security, and stability in Europe,” Zelenskyy said in a post on X.<\/p>\n

Ukraine has also lifted an advisory\u00a0for its citizens warning against travel to neighboring Hungary after the results were announced.<\/p>\n

\u00a0The advisory was issued\u00a0last month after Hungary detained seven employees of Ukraine’s state-owned Oschadbank<\/a>while they were transporting cash between banks in Austria and Ukraine.<\/p>\n

Edited by: Louis Oelofse<\/em><\/p>\n

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[analyse_image type=”featured” src=”https:\/\/static.dw.com\/image\/76757796_6.jpg”] https:\/\/p.dw.com\/p\/5C4Qb Peter Magyar (C) has won a landslide victory in Hungarian electionsImage: Denes Erdos\/AP Photo\/picture alliance Hungarian voters turned out in force on Sunday to deliver a landslide victory to pro-European candidate Peter Magyar, who has pledged to turn the country away from its far-right, authoritarian course under Prime Minister Viktor Orban. […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[2],"tags":[226,74],"class_list":["post-1880116","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-politics","tag-crawlmanager","tag-dw-com"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1880116","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=1880116"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1880116\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=1880116"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=1880116"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=1880116"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}