After a controversial 16 years as prime minister of Hungary, Viktor Orbán conceded defeat on April 13th 2026.
Orbán was first elected to the Hungarian government in 1998 as prime minister of a coalition government and leader of Fidesz. In 1999 he oversaw Hungary’s entry into the North Atlantic treaty. In 2002 Orbán and the Fidesz were defeated in the general election but Orbán remained popular.
He and Fidesz lost again in 2006 to the Hungary socialist party but was appointed in 2010 prime minister again after the devastation of the 2008 financial crash and when it was discovered that the socialist party had lied about the state of Hungary’s economy to garner votes.
Since 2010 Orbán’s leadership has been draped in controversy.
The media
Since 2011 Fidesz has had the power to fine journalists and withdraw media licenses with very little opposition. Media and broadcasts in Hungary were bought up by oligarchs and used to advertise party policy and opinion openly. In 2025 Orbán attempted to pass a law that would investigate journalists and independent researchers under suspicion of being “foreign influenced.” This sparked international outcry as an infringement on the freedom of the press.
Anti- LGBTQ+
Orbán has implemented several legislation affecting the LGBTQ+ community in Hungary over the years. In 2020 he banned same sex couples from adopting children, in the same year he abolished the ability for transgender people to change their gender legally.
In 2021 the act on protection of children was passed – this outlawed conversations and content about the LGBTQ+ community being shared with minors. This gained strong opposition both from advocates and politicians, and the European Commissioners for Justice sent an open letter to the Hungarian justice minister, raising concerns over the potential breach of the EU’s Charter of Fundamental Rights.
Finally in 2025, Orban’s government banned LGBTQ+ pride events in Hungary. The ban was justified under the child protection act and pride events were considered a promotion of LGBTQ+ material, deemed as “harmful to children”. This ban was met with a widespread demonstration that saw 200,000 people take to the country’s capital to protest the ban. An attendee, Luca, told The BBC, “We have a law that bans people who are different from others to gather. This is why we are here. Because it’s hurting our rights. That’s why we came.”
Anti-immigration
In a national statement Orban said: “We do not want to see a significant minority among ourselves that has different cultural characteristics and backgrounds. We would like to keep Hungary as Hungary,”
This came in response to the Brussels Immigration Act 2025, which proposed a unified response to immigration in Europe and encouraged countries to help asylum seekers.
Prime minister elect Peter Mahyar pledges to form a stronger relationship with the EU and says he will reform state institutions as the people voted “not just for change of government, but of regime.”
