[ad_1]
European Union Commission President Ursula von der Leyen hailed Hungary’s election as “a victory for fundamental freedoms” and compared the ousting of nationalist Viktor Orbán to the country’s 1956 anti-Soviet uprising and its 1989 break with communism.
Hungarians were waking up to a political earthquake after a landslide victory for the centre-right opposition led by Péter Magyar reverberated everywhere from Washington to Kyiv, and turning Budapest into a party zone.
“I really want to say to the Hungarian people, you’ve done it again!” von der Leyen told reporters in Brussels on Monday.
“Again against all odds, like you did in 1956 when you courageously stood up, like you did in 1989 when you were the first to cut the barbed wire that was dividing our continent.”
Orbán was Russian President Vladimir Putin’s main ally in the European Union, and regularly played an adversarial role both in that bloc and in NATO, frustrating efforts to aid war-torn Ukraine. Recently, Orbán blocked the EU’s 90-billion-euro ($145 billion Cdn) loan to Ukraine after accusing its neighbour of sabotaging Russian oil deliveries to his country, something Kyiv has denied.
Zelenskyy said in a social media post on X that “we are ready for meetings and joint constructive work for the benefit of both nations, as well as for the sake of Europe’s peace, security, and stability.”
Magyar, who just under three years ago was affiliated with Orbán’s party, said on Monday the election result showed that Hungary had decided to “change the regime” and choose a pro-European path.
“Hungarian people yesterday, exactly 23 years after the referendum about our EU membership, confirmed Hungary’s place in Europe,” he said.
Veteran Hungarian prime minister and Trump ally Viktor Orbán was soundly defeated by opposition leader Péter Magyar in parliamentary elections after 16 years in power.
However, Magyar said that his government would not support Ukraine’s fast-track entry to the European Union.
Magyar said he would take, but not initiate, a call with Putin, adding that “it would probably be a short conversation.”
“If we did talk, I could tell him that it would be nice to end the killing after four years and end the war,” Magyar said from the capital, Budapest.
Trump administration heavily backed Orban
Orbán, a fiery anti-communist youth leader during the Cold War, was a patriotic hero to supporters. But critics at home and abroad accused him of taking Hungary on an authoritarian path. He has scapegoated gays and immigrants, while amending the constitution to run for multiple terms and stacking the courts and regulatory agencies with officials favourable to his Fidesz party.
The two-thirds supermajority that Magyar’s Tisza party coalition secured would allow him to amend the constitution, and he said he would look to do so to limit a prime minister to two terms in office.
European leaders were quick to congratulate Magyar after wearying battles with Orbán. British Prime Minister Keir Starmer, French President Emmanuel Macron and German Chancellor Friedrich Merz were among several to do so on Sunday night.
“Hungary, Poland, Europe. Back together! Glorious victory, dear friends!” Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk declared on social media.
Tusk’s own election win more than two years ago was referenced by former U.S. president Barack Obama in a post, which praised the “resilience and determination of the Hungarian people.”
“The victory of the opposition in Hungary yesterday, like the Polish election in 2023, is a victory for democracy, not just in Europe but around the world,” Obama said on social media.
Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney also congratulated Magyar.
“The Hungarian people have chosen a new path,” Carney posted. “We are ready to work with you, and our European allies, to deepen our co-operation in trade, defence, and security.”
While liberals and moderate conservatives around the world were receptive to the win, it came after the U.S. administration endorsed Orbán. Both U.S. Vice-President JD Vance and Secretary of State Marco Rubio paid visits this year to Hungary to affirm their support, while President Donald Trump relayed his endorsement of Orbán on social media and in a video message.
That support was noted on Sunday by Hakeem Jeffries, Democratic minority leader in the U.S. House of Representatives.
“Far-right authoritarian Viktor Orbán has lost the election. Trump sycophants and MAGA extremists in Congress are up next in November,” said Jeffries.
Sen. Roger Wicker, a Republican from Mississippi whose time in Congress predates Trump’s Make America Great Again movement, said Hungary rejected “the malign influence of Vladimir Putin” and “decided their own future.”
Magyar pointed to comments Vance made in Budapest last week, when the vice-president said the U.S. would “work with whoever wins” the election. On his trip to Hungary, Vance lashed out at bureaucrats in Brussels, home to the EU, accusing them of hampering Orbán‘s ability to govern.
Israel Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, an Orbán ally, had not commented on the result well into Monday, though Foreign Minister Gideon Sa’ar and President Isaac Herzog congratulated Magyar.
The Kremlin said on Monday it hoped to continue its “highly pragmatic ties” with Hungary’s new political leadership.
“Hungary has made its choice, and we respect that choice,” Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov told reporters.
[ad_2]
Source link