On April 12th, 2026, Hungary came to a historic election result. After 16 years in office, Viktor Orban and the far right Fidesz Party lost their ⅔ supermajority to Peter Magyar and his center right Tizsa Party.
In 2010, Viktor Orban was voted into office as the Prime Minister of Hungary. Additionally, his party (Fidesz) gained a supermajority, meaning that they held ⅔ of the seats in Parliment. This not only granted them legitimacy, but also the ability to legally change the constitution. Throughout Orban’s term, he grew increasingly authoritarian—consolidating and censoring the media, taking control of universities to make them more conservative, and altering the courts in favor of his executive power. Through these actions, Orban and Fidesz tightened their grip on power.
Being a symbol of the far right movement, Orban’s loss comes as a disappointment to other far right leaders around the world. Many of these leaders such as Vladimir Putin and President Donald Trump had been allies with Orban. JD Vance, who campaigned for Orban in the days leading up to the election, was quoted stating that it “was a shame” he didn’t win. However, the election results have sent many sighs of relief throughout Europe. British Prime Minister Keir Starmer remarked it was “an historic moment, not only for Hungary, but for European democracy.” Taking a more neutral stance, Volodymyr Zelensky shared that “Ukraine has always sought good-neighbourly relations with everyone in Europe and we are ready to advance our cooperation with Hungary.” As Orban had blocked large sums of aid to Ukraine from the European Union, the other EU members are pleased with the election results, as Ukraine will now be able to access aid more easily for their ongoing war against Russia.
Much like the 2024 United States election, Magyar expected the economy to be the prime issue for voters in the election. Under Orban, the economy declined as social services at home were neglected in lieu of relations with foreign allies such as Russia. In his victory speech Magyar stated “we will regard politics as a service,” as he placed emphasis on progress in domestic issues such as the economy, healthcare, and education. However, while the economy was a point of importance, what swayed many voters is the desire to not be aligned with Russia. As a global leader of the far right movement, Orban has backed Putin on multiple occasions and helped block aid to Ukraine in order to help Russia. Hungarian citizens have criticized these actions as they look to maintain their position as a sovereign nation. Magyar’s campaign, in contrast to Orban, stressed to voters that he would not bow to foreign influences. In addition, Magyar also campaigned around anti-corruption measures and repairing relations with the EU.
With Magyar set to take office on May 9th, 2026, this change in government could lead to Hungary’s democratization. What will be critical in the coming months are the steps that Magyar and his administration take to undo Orban’s authoritarian system and restore a free and fair democracy to Hungary.
