Hungary's Prime Minister Orban experiences poor performance in European polls.
Petar Magjari used to be a key player in the Hungarian government, but in February he broke away from Prime Minister Orban and quickly became his main political opponent. Now, with his new party, he has a chance to make a mark in the European election.
Hungary saw its worst result for the Fidesz party of right-wing Prime Minister Viktor Orban in the recent European elections. With 44.6% of the votes, it remains the strongest political force in the country, as the election commission announced after counting nearly all votes. However, the big surprise was that Petar Magjari's new party, Respect and Freedom (Tisza), came out of nowhere to receive 29.7% of the votes.
Fidesz will send 11 representatives - instead of the usual 13 - to Brussels, according to the election commission. Magjari's Tisza party is expected to get 7 seats. Two seats went to a social democratic party alliance, while one went to the right-wing party Our Homeland (Mi Hazank). Magjari was once married to former Justice Minister Judit Varga. He held positions in government institutions and state-owned companies. In February, he announced his departure from Orban's system.
He aims to weaken the long-ruling prime minister and his Fidesz party and position himself for the next parliamentary election in 2026. Orban, who has been governing Hungary authoritatively since 2010, invested immense resources in fueling his voters for the European election and slandering Magjari. He even stoked war fears among the population - according to him, preventing a third world war depended on Hungary sending enough Fidesz representatives to the European Parliament.
Weber wants to include Magjari's Tisza party in the ranks of the EVP. Orban hopes to incorporate them into one of the right-wing factions that could form in the new parliament. EVP leader Manfred Weber recently stated that he would like to see Magjari's party in the ranks of the EVP.
In addition to the European elections, local elections took place in Hungary on Sunday. The opposition mostly managed to maintain the mayoral offices they had won in 2019. There was a scandal in the election for the mayor of Budapest. The left-green incumbent Gergely Karacsony won with a slim lead of 324 votes over his challenger David Vitezy. The small green splinter party LMP had endorsed Karacsony, while Orban's Fidesz supported Vitezy. Vitezy requested a recount of the votes on election night.
