280 days left: Orbán’s challenger Magyar launches his party’s election campaign
Péter Magyar, leader of the rising opposition force Tisza Party, returned to Hungary from a family vacation and immediately announced the official start of his party’s campaign for the upcoming parliamentary elections.
“Back on Hungarian soil. Reporting for duty,” Magyar wrote in a Facebook post on Saturday night, marking both his return and what he described as the beginning of “the greatest struggle” of his life.
“No stopping in the next 280 days”
According to the politician, the countdown to the next parliamentary election, expected to be held on 12 April 2026, has begun, and so has an intensive campaign effort. “The next 280 days will be relentless,” he wrote. “The stakes couldn’t be higher: our country, our children, and our grandchildren’s future.”
He pledged to lead from the front: “Raise the flags high. Onward only! You’ll find me on the frontlines every moment.”
Tisza Party, founded in 2024 and already polling ahead of several established opposition parties (and Orbán’s Fidesz itself), is planning a major congress next Saturday, 444.hu writes. Following that, Magyar will resume his national tour to meet supporters and expand the party’s base.
A return amid growing tensions
The Tisza Party politician spent the past week abroad with his three sons. His absence coincided with two major events back home: the Budapest Pride parade and a courtroom appearance by his ex-wife, former justice minister Judit Varga, who testified as a witness in the high-profile Völner–Schadl corruption case.
After the hearing, Varga referred to Magyar in front of journalists as “the Magyar Péter entity,” a comment that further fuelled speculation about tensions between the former political power couple.
A two-front race?
While the official campaign season has yet to begin, both Prime Minister Viktor Orbán and Péter Magyar are already gearing up for what promises to be a heated contest. Like Magyar, Orbán has also been counting down to 12 April 2026, the date both camps expect the election to be held.
Most Hungarian pollsters, excluding the government-leaning Nézőpont Institute, show the Tisza Party ahead of the opposition pack and Fidesz, and rapidly gaining support among disillusioned voters. However, Orbán remains confident in Fidesz’s victory, despite facing one of the most serious challenges to his rule since 2010.
Building a “more humane Hungary”
Magyar’s message remains rooted in themes of renewal and national unity. “We will take back our homeland and build a more humane Hungary,” he said in his statement, echoing the rhetoric that has earned him support among moderate conservatives and undecided voters.
With the campaign now officially underway, all eyes will be on how Tisza’s momentum holds and whether Magyar can translate grassroots enthusiasm into a real shift in Hungarian politics.
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