Reconciliation and hopes of returning to power in 2030 all appeared on the same stage in front of the Hungarian Parliament on Saturday, as politicians, journalists and activists associated with the former governing camp debated what should follow the Viktor Orbán era.
The demonstration, titled Ne féljetek! 2.0 – Do Not Be Afraid! 2.0 was held on Kossuth Square on 5 September, months after Viktor Orbán and Fidesz lost power following 16 years in government.
Organisers described the event as a party-politics-free civil gathering and an interactive “community workshop”. It was not an official Fidesz rally, although several speakers had close ties to the party or to the conservative media sphere that supported Orbán’s governments.
The speeches ranged from harsh attacks on the new government to calls for self-reflection, stronger civil organisation and preparations for a possible political comeback.
Revenge or rebuilding?
One of the strongest messages came from Gergely Huth, former editor-in-chief of PestiSrácok, a staunchly pro-Fidesz Hungarian news outlet.
Huth argued that the political order created since Hungary’s democratic transition was being dismantled under the new government. He accused several senior Tisza politicians of intimidating and persecuting part of the country and described them as traitors.
He also predicted that the time for “real accountability” would come, calling on patriotic civil groups to organise themselves more effectively. These were political allegations rather than established findings, and no evidence of criminal wrongdoing by the politicians he named was presented at the rally.
Róbert Ábrahám, a conservative commentator and YouTuber, offered a noticeably different prescription.
While he also painted a deeply critical picture of the country under the Tisza government, Ábrahám argued that revenge should not be the priority. Instead, he called for rebuilding the community and “winning back the young people”, saying that internal divisions among conservatives had weakened them.
His comments highlighted one of the central questions hanging over the gathering: whether the former governing camp should focus on retaliation against its political opponents or rethink how it speaks to voters after losing power.
For more on the current balance between Tisza and Fidesz: Tisza lead shrinks as Fidesz gains ground in new poll – Magyar’s ratings also slide
Where is Viktor Orbán?
Since Fidesz lost power, the former prime minister has kept a remarkably low public profile. After backing János Bóka to take over as Fidesz’s parliamentary group leader, Orbán stepped further away from the party’s day-to-day parliamentary front line.
At the time of writing, his latest Facebook post dates back to 20 August, when he thanked János Lázár for his years of work in parliament and government, adding that he would continue to count on his “experience, commitment and comradeship”.
Beyond such brief interventions, Viktor Orbán has given few clues about what he intends to do next – or how directly he plans to involve himself in Fidesz’s attempt to rebuild after defeat.
Ambitions for 2030, but few signs of momentum
In the event not every speaker focused on the immediate conflict. Dániel Kurucz, founder of KözTér, was already looking towards the next parliamentary election.
He said conservatives should aim to defeat Tisza with a two-thirds majority in 2030 and called for work on a new electoral programme to begin.
Civil society, he argued, should play a stronger role not only in supporting politics but also in controlling it.
Other speakers placed more emphasis on self-reflection and rebuilding. Fidesz municipal politician László Szabó said the political direction that had once served as a guide for him had gradually faded, while documentary filmmaker Fruzsina Skrabski argued that cooperation around civic causes should be possible regardless of party preference.
The scale of the gathering, however, stood in sharp contrast to some of the ambitions voiced from the stage. Attendance fell well short of the interest shown online, and even a speaker acknowledged the problem, telling the crowd that ten times as many people should have been there. For now, the rally looked less like the launch of a new political movement than an attempt to keep parts of the former pro-government milieu organised and searching for a direction.
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Cover image: Screenshot from KözTér’s YouTube livestream of the Ne féljetek! 2.0 rally
