Viktor Orbán, Hungary’s long-serving nationalist leader, was ousted after 16 years in power as the upstart centre-right Tisza party won Sunday’s national election, dealing a blow to his allies in Russia and Donald Trump’s White House.
Orban, 62, was celebrated by conservatives across Europe and U.S. as the mastermind of the “illiberal” model of democracy, but lost favour at home with voters who grew weary of economic stagnation, international isolation and oligarchs amassing wealth.
His landslide defeat handed Tisza’s Peter Magyar, 45, a comfortable majority in Hungary’s 199-seat legislature, opening the door for meaningful reforms of a system critics in the European Union said subverted democratic norms.
With nearly all ballots counted, Tisza was set to win 138 seats, more than the two-thirds majority Magyar would need to undo Orban’s constitutional overhaul and combat corruption.
Record turnout on Sunday underscored how many Hungarians saw the election as a watershed moment for their country.
Shockwaves For The EU And Beyond
The end of Orban’s 16-year rule will have significant implications not only for Hungary, but for the European Union, Ukraine and beyond.
Many European leaders are hoping for an end to Hungary’s adversarial role inside the EU, possibly opening the way for a 90 billion euro ($105 billion) loan to war-battered Ukraine that was blocked by Orban.
Some diplomats in Brussels cautioned issues such as migration may remain thorny. “Hungary will continue to be a challenging partner, but a partner with whom the other member states can work,” one said.
Volodymyr Zelenskyy congratulated the winner and pledged cooperation to strengthen Europe’s security. EU leaders, including Ursula von der Leyen, welcomed the result, raising hopes that suspended EU funds for Hungary could be released.
Viktor Orbán’s defeat would weaken Vladimir Putin’s closest ally in the EU and ripple across right-wing networks linked to Donald Trump, who had backed him.
Orbán, who denied allegations of ties with Moscow, had campaigned on protecting Hungary’s identity, while voters backing the challenger described the result as a rare chance for systemic change.
(With inputs from Reuters)
