The Prime Minister of Hungary’s Political Offensive at the End of the Election Campaign

The organisation of the convention for the populist right from the Patriots for Europe political group, the conservative CPAC conference, and the visit to Hungary of the American vice president are all elements of building an international position for Viktor Orbán and mobilising the electoral base before the parliamentary elections scheduled for April 12. Polls, conducted by independent research centres, indicate a significant advantage for the Respect and Freedom Party (Tisztelet és Szabadság, TISZA) over the ruling Fidesz-KDNP coalition. In order to increase TISZA’s chances of winning a majority of mandates in parliament, candidates from other opposition parties are successively giving up participating in elections in single-mandate constituencies.

CPAC Conference and Patriots for Europe Convention. The leaders of the right-wing populist parties, members of the Patriots for Europe political group in the European Parliament, in their ideological declaration adopted at the first General Assembly, emphasised their scepticism towards the European Union and their critical attitude towards the mainstream of EU politics, especially with regard to immigration and the functioning of the community[1]. Politicians, including Marine Le Pen (French National Union) and Matteo Salvini (Italian Northern League), expressed support for Viktor Orbán ahead of the parliamentary elections scheduled for April 12. The President of Argentina, Javier Milei, and the leader of the German AfD, Alice Weidel, as special guests at the conference of right-wing circles in Budapest on March 21, preceding the Patriots for Europe’s convention organised on March 23, also spoke in a similarly positive tone. However, in a special video message, US President Donald Trump gave the Prime Minister of Hungary unambiguous support for the elections. The US Vice President, J.D. Vance, visited Budapest on April 7-8, also serving to reinforce this message, as well as Secretary of State Marco Rubio’s visit to the Hungarian capital on February 16 („Komentarze IEŚ”, nr 1535).

Pre-election moods. According to a survey conducted by IDEA Intézet, TISZA can count on 39% of the vote, and Fidesz-KDNP on 30%[2]. Publicus Intézet’s research shows that TISZA has 38% support and the government coalition 29%[3], while Iránytű Intézet’s research indicates that 41% of voters intend to vote for Péter Magyar (TISZA) and 34% for the government coalition. At the same time, 62% of Iránytű Intézet respondents have a negative opinion about the situation in Hungary, with only 31% having a positive one. 54% of respondents would like to change the government, while 38% are against it[4]. Policy Solutions data show that only two out of ten Hungarians believe that their financial situation will improve next year, and three out of ten expect it to worsen[5]. Meanwhile, the Republikon Intézet survey shows that 41% of respondents consider Péter Magyar to be a more suitable candidate for prime minister, while 38% believe that Viktor Orbán is the better candidate[6].

Final phase of the election campaign. The final phase of the election campaign, which formally started on February 20, was very dynamic; among other things, pieces of information emerged about the thwarting of an alleged terrorist attack on the Serbian section of the gas pipeline supplying raw material to Hungary. In a subsequent press interview, an officer of the Hungarian Police revealed the background of preparations for a military mission in Chad („Komentarze IEŚ”, nr 1224), which – as he claims – was initiated for religious reasons by the prime minister’s son – Gáspár Orbán. The Bloomberg agency, on the other hand, published a transcript of a telephone conversation that was supposed to have taken place on October 17, 2025, between Viktor Orbán and Vladimir Putin. According to those reports, the Prime Minister of Hungary was to declare far-reaching cooperation. The Hungarian side maintains, however, that the conversation concerned the possibility of organising a peace summit in Budapest at the end of the war in Ukraine, which ultimately did not take place[7]. Furthermore, one of the watchdog associations posted recordings on the Internet documenting attempts to illegally induce voters to vote for Fidesz-KDNP candidates in the April 12 elections[8]. The independent press also reports that during the prime minister’s election rallies, men dressed in black appeared who aggressively tried to block people drowning out Viktor Orbán’s speeches.

Summary. Contrary to earlier declarations, the satirical Hungarian Two-Tailed Dog Party (Magyar Kétfarkú Kutya Párt, MKKP) decided to withdraw three candidates from running for seats in single-member constituencies to increase the chances of the opposition party TISZA winning them. Currently, 75 people are running for the MKKP, and it is necessary to fill 71 constituencies to maintain the national list. Of the 19 non-members who won single-member constituencies in the previous parliamentary elections, three are running again – including the popular Ákos Hadházy – and three candidates this time representing the left-wing Democratic Coalition (Demokratikus Koalició, DK). Meanwhile, former prominent Hungarian leftist activists called on the candidates of the Hungarian Socialist Party (Magyar Szocialista Párt, MSZP) and the DK, in an open letter, to resign from the candidacy in order to increase the chances of altering political power in Hungary. However, one of the MSZP candidates, in response to this demand, only appealed to his voters to vote on the national list of TISZA, while at the same time supporting his candidacy in the constituency. DK’s election narrative is based on opposition to the alleged future government coalition Fidesz-KDNP and the far-right movement Our Homeland (Mi Hazánk). According to the DK, such a possibility – even in the event of an electoral victory of TISZA – can only be prevented by the presence of representatives of this left-wing group in the National Assembly.

The voter turnout and the territorial distribution of votes will be of decisive importance for the result of the elections on April 12. The districts in which Fidesz-KDNP is most likely to obtain mandates have a smaller number of inhabitants than those that are likely to fall into the hands of the TISZA party. Therefore, the Fidesz-KDNP campaign focuses on the active mobilisation of its own electorate, presenting the ruling coalition as a guarantor of national security and the continuation of the existing social policy, as well as Viktor Orbán as a politician with an important international position.

[1] The third largest group in the European Parliament was established at the beginning of July 2024, transforming from a political alliance, concluded on the initiative of Hungarian Fides, the Czech movement ANO, and the Austrian Freedom Party (FPÖ). The group has 87 MPs out of 720 MEPs – see https://www.patriotsforeurope.eu/ (07.04.2026).

[2] See: https://www.facebook.com/share/p/1Fkb8ozWHi/?mibextid=wwXIfr (08.04.2026).

[3] See: https://publicus.hu/blog/partok-tamogatottsaga-2026-aprilis/ (08.04.2026).

[4] See: https://nepszava.hu/3317917_tisza-part-fidesz-iranytu-intezet-felmeres-ketparti-parlament-kormanyvaltas (08.04.2026).

[5] See: https://telex.hu/belfold/2026/04/03/haborus-fenyegetes-kampanyfegyver-fidesz-policy-solutions (08.04.2026).

[6] See: https://republikon.hu/media/175851/Ri_Alkalmassag-elemzes.pdf (08.04.2026).

[7] According to reports from an international team of investigative journalists, the Hungarian Foreign Minister, during telephone conversations, offered to his Russian counterpart EU documents via the Hungarian embassy in Moscow.

[8] Within a dozen or so days of publication, the film has already been viewed by more than 2 million users – see https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZCwQR5HRWR8 (08.04.2026).

[Photo Viktor Orbán / Facebook]