Paul KirbyDigital publisher Europe in Budapest
M1 TV/BBC
The man who ended Viktor Orbán’s 16-year term in office, Péter Magyar, meets with the Hungarian president, seeking a rapid transfer of power after Sunday’s landslide victory.
President Tamás Sulyok, who refused Magyar’s request for resignation, is widely expected to appoint Magyar as the next prime minister. Magyar said he is expected to take office by around May 5
Hungary’s next prime minister appeared on state radio and television Wednesday for the first time in 18 months and made clear his intention to suspend news coverage, which he condemned as propaganda.
Meanwhile, US President Donald Trump said Magyar was a “good man”, having actively campaigned for Orbán.
“I think the new man will do a good job,” Trump told ABC News reporter Jonathan Karl, after previously calling on Hungarians to “go out and vote” for his friend and close ally, Orbán.
The Magyars arrived at the presidential palace shortly before 10:00 a.m. (08:00 GMT) for the talks. The two other party leaders and MPs were also invited to the meeting with President Sulyok, including Orbán.
Magyar broke with Orbán’s party in March 2024 and for two years attracted broad public support for his Tisza party, which swept the ruling Fidesz party on Sunday with a so-called supermajority of two-thirds of the seats in parliament.
He said 70 to 80 percent of Hungary’s media had been commandeered by Orbán’s allies, insulting him and his party with 300 lies every day, not allowing him a single appearance on state television.
But that changed on Wednesday, first with a half-hour broadcast on public radio Kossuth, followed by an appearance on M1 TV, in which he confirmed his goal of suspending their news coverage and forming a new broadcasting authority to guarantee press freedom.
“Every Hungary deserves a public service media outlet that broadcasts the truth,” he told Kossuth radio, explaining that he was not seeking personal revenge, even though he and his family had been insulted “morning, noon and night.”
His interviews were sometimes combative as he told television and radio hosts that their media broadcast propaganda.
Magyar is eager to reverse years of Orbán’s policies that transformed Hungary into what the European Parliament called an “electoral autocracy.” Hungarians were angered by repeated scandals involving corruption and cronyism, and Magyar spoke of his predecessor’s administration which had exposed his country.
Billions of euros in EU funding have been frozen over rule of law and other issues, and Magyar spoke to European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen on Tuesday in a bid to release the money.
Hungary’s economy has been languishing for some time and Ms von der Leyen said there was “rapid work to be done to… restore the rule of law. Realign with our shared European values”.
An estimated €17 billion (£14.8 billion) has been suspended, but Hungary is also awaiting approval of a further €16 billion for defense loans.
Separately, Orbán is expected to still be in office as caretaker prime minister when EU leaders meet for an informal summit in Cyprus on April 23-34.
EU leaders are urgently pushing for Hungary to overturn Orbán’s veto of 90 billion euros in aid to Ukraine in the weeks before the election.
Magyar made it clear that he did not consider the veto relevant, with Hungary being one of three countries that withdrew from the loan to Ukraine last December. However, it is unclear how the veto will be lifted and whether Orbán himself will be involved.
Orbán himself has remained largely silent since his crushing electoral defeat. He posted a message on Facebook making clear his intention to rebuild his party: “The work begins. Let’s reorganize and continue to fight for the Hungarian people!”
