Same ideology: JD Vance is trying to help Viktor Orban in Hungary.Image: keystone
In Budapest everything points to a change of power. Now US Vice President JD Vance is rushing to the aid of his ally Viktor Orban.
04/08/2026, 02:0104/08/2026, 02:01
Remo Hess, Brussels / ch media
Viktor Orban still has five days left in power in Hungary – at least that’s what you have to assume if you look at the polls. They unanimously predict a clear victory for the opposition collective movement “Tisza” led by challenger Peter Magyar.
But polls don’t decide elections. And Viktor Orban is doing everything he can to turn things around at the finish line. He hopes that the decisive boost will come from his most powerful ally: the USA.
Image: politpro.eu/chmedia
Vance also suspects an “EU conspiracy”
US Vice President JD Vance traveled to Budapest on Tuesday to support Orban. The performance in the former Carmelite monastery, now the seat of the government, is carefully staged. The message is clear: Washington stands behind Orban.
“Viktor Orban has achieved wonderful things.” According to Vance, a devout Catholic, he is a “wise leader” and one of the few in Europe who still stands up for Christian values and Western civilization.
But the Trump deputy also said he did not come to give the Hungarians instructions. Rather, he wanted to send a message to the “EU bureaucrats in Brussels”. They interfered “shamefully” in the election campaign and tried to destroy the Hungarian economy. «And all because of this guy [Orban] “I can’t stand it,” says Vance.
Vance did not provide any evidence. But his claim about EU interference corresponds exactly to the Orban campaign narrative. In many respects it revolves around an alleged plot by the opposition with the EU and Ukraine against Hungary. The numerous posters suggesting such a conspiracy probably did not go unnoticed by Vance as he drove through the Hungarian capital.
Orban’s camp is trying to stir up sentiment with an anti-EU and anti-Ukraine campaign.Image: keystone
Fidesz negative campaign no longer catches people
Will the rescue mission be successful? Andrea Vigar is skeptical. She is head of policy at the independent research institute “Republikon” in Budapest. According to her, Orban’s problem is, among other things, that hardly any Fidesz voters have any idea who JD Vance actually is. If so, they would know his boss, US President Donald Trump. But at the moment this has something else to do with the Iran war.
In addition, challenger Peter Magyar is running a clever election campaign. While Orban is focusing his campaign on the “external threat” and negative issues such as fear of war, Magyar is offering Hungarians a look into the future, said Vigar. He promises to get back the blocked EU billions, fight rampant corruption and mend relations with international partners.
Finally there are selfies: Peter Magyar at an election campaign event in the village of Törtel. (March 25, 2026)Image: remo hess/chmedia
“Peter the Hungarian” is not a left-green Euro turbo
The political scientist’s assessments correspond to the picture that CH Media was able to get from an on-site inspection a few days ago. In Törtel, a small village about an hour and a half from Budapest, around 500 residents gathered on the square in front of the Old Mill. They want to see this Hungarian everyone is talking about for themselves. There are soft drinks and homemade cakes. A small truck is brought in as a stage. Village festival atmosphere instead of a demonstration of power.
At twelve o’clock sharp the time has come. Shaking hands, listening to Hungarian music and waving the national flag, Magyar, whose name literally translates as “Peter the Hungarian”, marches into the improvised arena. It quickly becomes clear: This is hardly the left-green Euro-turbo that Orban is trying to portray him as.
Magyar promises to build “a functioning and humane” Hungary. Of course, he also announces tax cuts and increases in family allowances. He avoids hot topics like his stance on Ukraine. Because he knows: Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky is about as unpopular among the Hungarian population as Russian leader Vladimir Putin.
At the end there are selfies with the residents, who appear to be happy. «Laszlo Földi [der Fidesz-Bezirksvorsitzende] In any case, you can never be seen here,” says one of the spectators.
Orban: “We will lose everything we have worked for”
A few hours later, 130 kilometers away, in Esztergom, the former royal city on the Danube Bend on the Slovakian border, Viktor Orban made his appearance. Here, at the foot of the monumental basilica, Orban has deployed his entire campaign machine.
At the foot of the Esztergom Basilica: Orban during his election campaign appearance (March 25, 2026)Image: remo hess/chmedia
Thousands of Fidesz loyalists from surrounding towns stream in in a banner procession, accompanied by TV cameras. The Hungarian flags and torches, which are given away for free, immerse the scene in a patriotic Fidesz festival. The audience is warmed up by the singer of the Hungarian rock band Edda in a yellow leather jacket.
Orban promises to keep Hungarians out of the “Slavic fratricidal war” in Ukraine. He accuses the opposition of consuming drugs. And he proclaims: Only his government can ensure stability and peace in the current environment. If you vote for Tisza, “we will lose everything we have worked for over the last 16 years,” Orban appeals to his compatriots.
“Winner’s bonus” could become a boomerang
Peter Magyar or Viktor Orban, who Hungarians trust more, will be revealed on Sunday. Despite the clear polls, the outcome is difficult to predict. The electoral system is complicated. In simple terms, however, it can be said that the winner is massively favored: whoever wins the important direct mandates receives additional list votes. This has allowed Viktor Orban to govern with a two-thirds majority in recent years despite a relatively lower overall share of the vote.
If Magyar manages to win the direct mandate in enough individual constituencies, this system could now also play in his favor – and become Orban’s downfall. (aargauerzeitung.ch)