Fidesz’s Minister of Transport called Tisza Party’s Hungarian candidate Slovakian – UPDATE: Lázár’s “apology”
A heated political controversy has erupted in Hungary after János Lázár, the Minister of Construction and Transport, made remarks widely interpreted as questioning the nationality of a parliamentary candidate from the opposition Tisza Party.
Big mistake from Minister Lázár
The comments, delivered during a televised interview in the western Hungarian town of Sárvár, have prompted sharp condemnation from Péter Magyar, leader of Tisza, who is now demanding a public apology – or even Lázár’s withdrawal from public life.
The incident occurred during an interview broadcast on local Sárvár Television, when Lázár was asked whether a Tisza Party politician could exert pressure on him regarding road construction projects, writes Telex.
Lázár responded by saying that, in principle, anyone could approach him, as his door was open to all. However, he then added a controversial remark about one of the party’s candidates in Vas County.
Lázár stated that he had never met the female candidate in question and expressed surprise that the Tisza Party “could not find a Hungarian” and instead had nominated “a Slovak woman” in the constituency.
He went on to say that, at the very least, candidates in Hungary should be Hungarian. The comment was quickly seized upon by opposition figures and widely criticised on social media and in the press.
Strompová ironically got her Hungarian residency when Orbán was PM for the first time
In response, Péter Magyar issued a strongly worded statement clarifying that the candidate, Viktória Strompová, is a Hungarian citizen of Hungarian ethnicity. According to Magyar, Strompová grew up in Bodrogszentmária, a predominantly Hungarian-populated settlement in southern Slovakia, roughly 20 kilometres from Sátoraljaújhely.
Her great-grandparents were born in the territory of historical Hungary, and she has been living in Hungary for more than 16 years, currently residing in Sárvár.
Magyar also pointed out that Strompová received her Hungarian ID as a child during the first Orbán government, questioning why her Hungarian identity is now being challenged.
“Was she Hungarian enough then?” he asked, adding that she appears to have “become Slovak” only after standing as a Tisza Party candidate against what he described as a corrupt political system.
Péter Magyar suggests that Lázár disappear
The leader of the Tisza Party demanded that Lázár issue an immediate public apology to Strompová or “disappear from public life.” He also called on Prime Minister Viktor Orbán to clarify whether such rhetoric now represents the official stance of the governing Fidesz party.
UPDATE: Lázár’s apology (?)
Following the backlash, János Lázár responded in a comment under a video shared by Viktória Strompová, issuing what he described as an apology for his remarks. The minister said the situation had been a “misunderstanding” that was now clarified, adding cryptically that “the situation has also become tisza-fied,” without explaining what he meant by the phrase (it’s something like a pun in Hungarian: “A félreértés tisztázódott – a helyzet pedig tiszásodott.”). He acknowledged that Strompová was right and expressed regret over what he called poor wording.
In his comment, Lázár congratulated Strompová on what he referred to as her “very recent Hungarian citizenship,” adding that “the country is growing.” The apology itself triggered further reactions: Péter Magyar reiterated his demand that Lázár withdraw from public life, while actor and Tisza politician Ervin Nagy said the minister’s name would now be written “in lowercase” in Upper Hungary. Strompová, in a video response, urged Lázár not to exclude Hungarians living beyond the borders from the nation, and political analyst Gábor Török described the incident as an unusually serious mistake for Fidesz, HVG writes.