Hungary will hold its next parliamentary elections on 12 April, President Tamás Sulyok announced on Tuesday, setting the stage for a closely watched vote that could reshape the European Union’s relationship with Budapest.
The election, whose date was confirmed on Facebook, could mark the end of Prime Minister Viktor Orbán’s long hold on power. The Fidesz leader is neck-and-neck with his challenger and former Fidesz politician Péter Magyar, who is leading the main opposition Tisza party, in most polls. However, the reliability of much of the data is in question due to Orbán’s influence over much of the country’s media.
Both have turned the campaign trail into a contest between two sharply different visions for Hungary’s place in Europe.
Orbán, in power since 2010, has often been described by EU officials as the bloc’s enfant terrible, clashing repeatedly with Brussels over rule of law concerns. Since Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine, Orbán has used his veto to block or delay decisions on sanctions against Moscow or aid to Kyiv.
Magyar, a member of the European Parliament, is backed by the centre-right European People’s Party and has campaigned on restoring ties with EU institutions and tackling corruption. His rise has coincided with efforts by Orbán’s allies to lift his parliamentary immunity to allow prosecution over alleged criminal offences.
Magyar denies the accusations, calling them politically motivated. Last year, the European Parliament rejected the request to waive his immunity, a decision he welcomed as a rebuke to political pressure but which Orbán portrayed as evidence that his rival was aligned with Brussels’ establishment.
(vib)