Will it be easier again now? Orban is gone, Brussels is celebrating - this is what the fateful election means for the EU
For years, Viktor Orban has blocked many things in the international community. Will the landslide victory of his opponent Magyar now change anything? There is hope for movement in Brussels.
13.04.2026, 07:13
13.04.2026, 08:39
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- Following Peter Magyar's election victory, EU leaders such as Ursula von der Leyen are relieved and see Hungary back on a pro-European course.
- The hope is that blockades by Viktor Orban - for example with regard to Ukraine aid, Russia sanctions and EU decisions - will be resolved in future.
- The EU also expects improvements in the rule of law and the fight against corruption after billions in EU funds for Hungary were previously frozen.
Brussels is breathing a sigh of relief after the election victory of the former opposition leader Peter Magyar in Hungary's fateful election.
"Hungary has chosen Europe," wrote EU Commission President Ursula von der Leyen on Platform X. "A country is back on its European path." The Union is becoming stronger. Von der Leyen congratulated the election winner Magyar in the evening and they agreed to work closely together.
EU Council President António Costa also wrote that he was looking forward to working closely with Magyar - to make Europe stronger and more prosperous. "Hungary's place is at the heart of Europe", affirmed the President of the European Parliament, Roberta Metsola.
Is the Ukraine financial aid package coming?
The vote in Hungary was also a kind of fateful election for the EU and its ability to act. In Brussels and in most other EU capitals, hopes were pinned on an election victory for the challenger to Prime Minister Viktor Orban. For years, Orban and his government have been torpedoing EU support for Ukraine, which is under attack from Russia, and selling this as a "peace policy".
As a result, an EU financial aid package worth billions is currently on hold due to Orban's blockade - even though the right-wing populist had actually already agreed to this in December and Hungary does not even have to contribute to the financing costs. Orban is also blocking new EU-Russia sanctions and progress in the EU accession negotiations with Ukraine. Far-reaching plans for more support for Ukraine - as well as other foreign policy decisions - require the unanimous agreement of all 27 member states in the EU.
Although Peter Magyar has not yet positioned himself as a particularly staunch supporter of Ukraine, he is considered to be clearly pro-Western and much less close to Russia than Orban.
More respect for EU standards and fundamental values?
The second great hope in Brussels is that Magyar could also bring Hungary back on track with the EU when it comes to the rule of law. The deficits in this area have been considered so serious in recent years that EU funds in the double-digit billion range earmarked for Hungary have been frozen. Specifically, deficiencies in the awarding of public contracts and the fight against corruption, conflicts of interest and a politically influenced public prosecutor's office have been denounced.
A defense loan Budapest applied for in Brussels from the so-called Safe Program has also not yet been released. With this program, the EU Commission grants EU loans secured by the EU budget for the procurement of armaments.
According to the election commission's calculations, Magyar's Tisza party has achieved a two-thirds majority in the new parliament. Prime Minister Viktor Orban had conceded defeat in the parliamentary elections.
The leader of the Christian Democratic party alliance EPP in the European Parliament, Manfred Weber, called Magyar's election success a clear victory for democracy in Hungary and for Europe. Green MEP Daniel Freund said that Magyar's looming election success was the end of Orban's "corrupt mafia state". FDP MEP Marie-Agnes Strack-Zimmermann simply wrote on Platform X: "Welcome back to Europe, Hungary."
