Hungarian Elections
Hungarian Elections
The Limits of Electoral Autocracy: Lessons from Orbán’s Fall
After 16 years in power, Viktor Orbán’s Fidesz was defeated within the very electoral system it had engineered to entrench its rule. Hungary’s 2026 election shows that electoral autocracies can be more vulnerable than they appear. They can be defeated when democratic opposition forces adapt strategically, coordinate across sectors, and are ready and able to capitalize on moments of declining regime legitimacy.
30.04.2026
Hungarian Elections
Meanders of Democratic Renewal. What Can Hungary Learn from the Polish Experience?
Hungary’s parliamentary election brought a spectacular victory for the opposition. Viktor Orbán has lost power after 16 years of continued rule. His challenger, Péter Magyar, managed to build a movement that took advantage of a system meticulously rigged to prevent the incumbent from ever losing power. It is a victory against a captured state that systematically used the Hungarian public assets for private profit and unfair partisan advantage. Yet, the electoral victory will not automatically restore democratic standards and a rule-based order. In her op-ed, Maria Skora argues that the recent experience of Poland, which has been struggling to overcome the consequences of its own autocratic episode, might help Hungary to navigate the risks of re-democratization.
21.04.2026
Hungarian Elections
Hungary Replaced Orbán – But Can It Replace His Foreign Policy Legacy?
Orbán’s defeat in last Sunday’s election rings in a new era for Hungary, but also for its partners to the East and West. In her op-ed, Gabriela Greilinger argues that while Péter Magyar’s calls for more pragmatism and constructive relations with Western partners suggest, in part, a decoupling from the country’s former “Eastern Opening”, some challenges will remain.
16.04.2026
Hungarian Elections
All At Once – Coping with Positive Shock in Hungary
Bucking wider trends once again, Hungarian voters ousted a seemingly entrenched quasi-party state on Sunday. The resounding defeat of the first proudly illiberal regime within the enlarged West forces us to revise entrenched wisdoms about the System of National Cooperation and its leader. The unhoped-for supermajority for Tisza also shows the country’s political culture and historical trajectory in a new light. Ferenc Laczó reflects on the meaning of the Hungarian elections.
14.04.2026
Hungarian Elections
Watershed Elections in Hungary? – What’s at Stake?
For the past 16 years, Hungary has increasingly come to be seen as the epitome of swift and steady democratic decline ending in a clear path toward autocratization. However, the ruling Fidesz party anticipates the 2026 general elections with a challenger that looks more credible and more popular than the ones it defeated during the past four elections, which opens the possibility for democratic recovery. Still, questions abound regarding the peaceful transition of power, the legal possibilities for rebuilding the rule of law and restoring media freedom, the reintegration of the country into the EU, as well as the malleability of popular attitudes that made the 16-year rule of Fidesz possible in the first place.
9.04.2026
Hungarian Elections
Fidesz on the Defensive: Sixteen Years of Dominance Under Threat
Hungary's April 2026 parliamentary election presents the first serious challenge to Viktor Orbán's sixteen-year rule. Péter Magyar's Tisza party, built on technocratic populism and a clean break from the discredited old opposition, leads Fidesz by roughly ten points among committed voters. This analysis examines the roots of Fidesz's vulnerability, the dynamics of a campaign dominated by economic grievances and a series of scandals, and the scenarios that could yet determine the outcome.
4.02.2026
