Record turnout as Hungarians go to the ballot box

Hungarians are voting in what is widely regarded as Europe’s most important election this year, with record turnout in a vote that could unseat populist Prime Minister Viktor Orbán after 16 years in power.

It marks an important moment for Orbán, the European Union’s longest-serving leader and one of its greatest foes, who has come a long way from his early days as a liberal, anti-Soviet firebrand to the Russia-friendly nationalist admired by the global far right today.

The ballot boxes opened at 06.00 in the morning and were planned to be closed at 19.00.

Orbán and his main rival, Péter Magyar, arrived at different polling stations in Budapest almost simultaneously to cast their votes.

Speaking to reporters outside, Orbán, 62, said the campaign was “a big national moment for us” and thanked activists and supporters for their work.

“I’m here to win,” he said.

According to the National Electoral Bureau, turnout was over 74 percent after the first 11 hours of voting; this was a record number for any election in Hungary’s post-communist history.

With still two hours left before the polls close, 140,000 more voters have cast ballots than in the entire 2022 election.

Orbán has repeatedly thwarted EU efforts to support Ukraine in its war against an all-out Russian invasion, while cultivating close ties with President Vladimir Putin and refusing to end Hungary’s dependence on fossil fuel imports from Russia.

Recent revelations showed that a senior member of his government frequently shared the contents of EU talks with Moscow, fueling accusations within the bloc that Hungary was acting on Russia’s behalf.

The election was being closely followed in countries across Europe and beyond; This was a testament to the huge role Orbán plays in far-right populist politics around the world.

Members of Trump’s “Make America Great Again” movement are among those who see the Orbán government and the Fidesz political party as shining examples of conservative, anti-globalization policies in action.

Magyar told reporters after casting his vote that the election was “a choice between east or west, propaganda or honest public discourse, corruption or clean public life.”

“I call on all Hungarian citizens to exercise their right to vote,” he said.

Marcell Mehringer, a 21-year-old who voted in Budapest, said he was voting “first of all, so that Hungary can finally become a so-called European country, so that young people, and indeed everyone, can fulfill their basic civic duty to unite this nation a little bit and to break down these borders created by hatred.”

During his 16-year term as prime minister, Orbán launched a crackdown on minority rights and media freedoms, destroyed many of Hungary’s institutions and was accused of siphoning large sums of money into the coffers of his allied business elites, an allegation he denies.

He has also seriously strained Hungary’s relationship with the EU. Even though Hungary is one of the smallest countries in the EU, with a population of 9.5 million, Orbán has repeatedly used his veto power to block decisions that require unanimity.

He most recently blocked a 90 billion euro ($147 billion) EU loan to Ukraine, prompting his partners to accuse him of missing out on critical aid.

But after winning four consecutive elections with his party’s two-thirds majority in parliament, signs have emerged that Orbán’s absolute control over Hungarian politics may be coming to an end.

Magyar has quickly risen to become Orbán’s most serious rival.

The 45-year-old leader of the centre-right Tisza party, which is leading in independent polls, has campaigned on issues affecting ordinary voters, including Hungary’s faltering public health and transport sectors and what he calls widespread government corruption.

Magyar, a former member of Orbán’s Fidesz, left the party in 2024 and quickly founded Tisza.

He has toured Hungary continuously since then, holding rallies in settlements large and small in a campaign blitz that has recently seen him visit as many as six towns a day.

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