In the summer, there is usually not much news, including in Hungary. But this year is a little different - in terms of foreign policy, Orban's government has been adding fuel to the fire of its anti-Ukrainian campaign for weeks, and on the cultural front, sentiments against the so-called "perversions" of the Hungarian youth and music scene are constantly being stoked. The main domestic enemy is the leader of the opposition, Péter Magyar, whose "Tisza" party continues to grow in the polls.
There are nine months left until the parliamentary elections - they will probably be held in April next year. But the desire for change is already felt - many Hungarians no longer want to be governed by Orban and hope for change. Orban and his government are responding with turbo campaigns that are increasingly polarizing society.
Referendum for Viktor Orban
In a speech on Saturday, the Hungarian prime minister launched the election campaign. In parallel, his rival Peter Magyar also addressed his supporters. After these two appearances, it is unequivocally clear - the upcoming elections will become a referendum on Orban himself.
The tone of Orban's speech was rather conciliatory - he refrained from using harsh words about his opponents or using far-right slogans. As a goal for the 2026 elections, he announced that his party "Fidesz" should win 87 of the 106 direct parliamentary seats. In the name of this goal, Orban called for the establishment of so-called digital civic circles.
"Civic circles" have existed since 2002 and are small local groups of supporters who are not necessarily members of "Fidesz" but who work actively for Orbán and his party. He called for their creation under the motto "The homeland cannot be in opposition" and since then anyone who is not with him and his party has been declared a traitor.
Now the "digital civic circles" are expected to make the prime minister more attractive on social media, as he is extremely unpopular among young people.
Is Hungary still fulfilling its NATO commitments?
In his speech, Orbán declared himself categorically against Hungary's association with the West and its integration into the EU. "Of the six power centers in the world, we have good relations with five - with the Americans, the Russians, the Chinese, the Indians and the Turkish world, only with Brussels - no", said the Hungarian prime minister.
He did not predict any improvement in these relations and even threatened to veto the new EU budget if Brussels continued to support Ukraine and accelerate its integration into the Community. Unlike the West, Hungary was not ready to give up its "cultural-Christian values". Orbán summarized his position as follows: Hungary would not engage in "war, migration and gender", as Brussels did.
"The "grand strategy in Hungary" envisaged the country becoming great and rich again, Orbán emphasized. Indirectly, however, he left open the question of whether Budapest would fulfill its commitments to NATO under his leadership. He shared his opinion that a third world war seemed increasingly likely, and stressed that Hungary would definitely stay away from military conflicts, which is why it should maintain good relations with all the world's power centers. But NATO and the scenario of a Russian attack on an Alliance country were not mentioned at all.
A clash of two value systems
In his speech, conservative opposition leader Péter Magyar took the exact opposite position under the motto "Hungary's place in Europe and the world". He emphasized Hungary's connection with Europe and the West since the founding of the state 1,000 years ago and categorically distanced himself from Russia, its war against Ukraine and aggressive Russian policy in general. Magyar assured the EU of Hungary's constructive and critical membership, and NATO - of its loyalty to the Alliance. He also promised that he would make Hungary a predictable and reliable partner again.
The opposition leader spoke as a future prime minister and, along with distancing himself from Russia, focused on Hungarian-Polish relations, which Orbán has destroyed. He even said a few words in Polish and announced that his first foreign visit as prime minister would be to Warsaw. He also assured that he would maintain constructive partnership with Hungary's other neighbors.
Péter Magyar, a former member of "Fidesz", has been making a rapid career as an opponent of the current prime minister for the past year and a half. He is a talented speaker who manages to mobilize the masses. Although he also opposes Ukraine's rapid membership in the EU, the opposition politician advocates a more relaxed approach to the topic.
His words often border on populism - for example, promises to clean up corruption, a transparent state and an end to social polarization. These are all intentions that are well received by Orbán's many disappointed voters.
Most independent media and observers do not define the two speeches simply as fundamentally different, but as a clash of two value systems. However, whether Hungarians will be able to freely choose between the two and whether Orbán will not try to maintain his power by all means is still an open question.
Author: Keno Fersek