Thousands of Hungarians marched through the streets of Budapest on Thursday as rival political rallies were held in the capital – marking Remembrance Day of the 1956 Revolution, the anniversary of the country’s failed uprising against the Soviet Union.
It coincides with the campaign ahead of the April vote, in which the prime minister may face the biggest electoral challenge of his career.
The rallies are seen as a barometer of support for Prime Minister Viktor Orban, the EU’s longest-serving leader, and challenger Peter Magyar and his Tisza party, both of whom are facing tough competition in the polls six months before a general election.
Prime Minister Orbán’s self-labeled “peace march” began first, with his supporters marching under a banner that read, “We do not want to die for Ukraine.”
Supporters of Orbán’s pro-EU political rival Peter Magyar marched under a banner demanding “system change”, which he and his centre-right Tisza party dubbed a “national rally”.
Viktor Orban, a nationalist, has led Hungary for 15 years as a far-right populist, which has strained relations with the European Union but has always had friendly relations with Russian President Vladimir Putin. He is also a friend of US President Donald Trump.
Peter Magyar, a 44-year-old former lawyer and former Fidesz insider turned EU MP, has become Orban’s main challenger in February 2024, riding a wave of economic and political discontent after publicly breaking with Orban and his party.
What did Orban say to his supporters?
Addressing supporters on Parliament Square, Orban, a staunch critic of the EU and Ukraine, accused Brussels of thwarting President Trump’s efforts to end the war there.
Orbán told the flag-waving crowd, “Brussels has decided to go to war. If Brussels had not hindered the US president’s peacekeeping mission, the war would already be over.”
Orbán has repeatedly angered both the EU and fellow European leaders by opposing military aid to Ukraine and strongly attacking the idea of EU and NATO membership for Kiev, as well as maintaining close ties to the Kremlin despite concerted EU efforts to isolate Moscow over its invasion of neighboring Ukraine.
Orbán and his Fidesz party argue that Hungary’s sovereignty is today threatened not by Russia but by “the imperial aspirations of the EU”.
The prime minister is expected to travel to Brussels on Thursday for an EU summit on Kiev’s support.
Orban tries to portray opponents as ignorant anti-war
Despite a tight political race right now, things were looking better for Orbán last week when Trump and Putin announced that peace talks would soon be held in Budapest – for historical reasons as well as Kiev being understandably nervous about Orbán’s participation in any talks between Russia and Ukraine – before canceling them.
Political observers see the focus on the war as beneficial to Orbán, who is portraying himself and his supporters as “pacifists” and anyone supporting Brussels, Tisza and Ukraine as “pro-war”.
Orban, who dubbed the opposition rally a “Brussels war march”, turned his rhetoric toward Magyar and Tisza in his remarks, saying, “Those who believe they are supporting a change in government are actually supporting war, whether they realize it or not.”
What did Magyar say to his supporters?
Later on Thursday, Magyar waved the Hungarian flag as he addressed thousands of his supporters at Heroes’ Square.
After marching through the streets of Budapest chanting “Russians go home” – a reference to both 1956 and the perceived increase in Russian influence on Hungarian politics today – Magyar supporters cheered him on, shouting, “We’ve had enough.”
Magyar used the historical significance of that day to highlight the dramatic change in Orbán’s stance over the years and took his supporters back to 1989, when Orbán demanded Soviet troops pull out of Hungary.
“The politician who demanded that Russian troops leave Hungary is now the Kremlin’s most loyal ally,” Magyar said. “He created a system in which power is centralized, the press is controlled… and the country is ruled by fear.”
Magyar is running as an anti-corruption candidate and is against Orbán’s leadership, pointing out that under him Hungary has become the poorest and most corrupt member state of the European Union.
Magyar recently completed an 80-day open forum discussion tour of the nation to take his message to rural voters. His push is a direct threat to Fidesz, which draws most of its support from rural voters.
Edited by: Sam Dusan Inayatullah