In an historic turnout for Hungary’s elections on Sunday, Prime Minister Viktor Orbán’s 16-year leadership ended with a major victory for his opponent Peter Magyar.
The massive defeat is raising concerns about the future of Jewish life and the freedom of Israelis visiting the country.
Orbán had strong ties with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and President Donald Trump – taking dramatic steps to show his support for Israel. Netanyahu visited Budapest in early April 2025, defying an ICC arrest warrant as Orbán pledged not to enforce it.
Orbán’s opponent Magyar’s victory is weighty, securing a two-thirds parliamentary majority (138 out of 199 seats) giving him the power to reverse the constitutional changes Orbán implemented in building a conservative democracy.
Some of those changes focused on protecting Hungary’s borders and resistance to EU migration policies. Hungary has been paying 1 million euros per day in fines since June 2024 to keep its borders closed to illegal immigrants.
About 100,000 Jewish people live largely worry-free in Hungary. Its capital, Budapest, is a popular destination for Israelis — not only for its beautiful architecture, thermal baths, and great food, but also because visitors can openly express their Israeli and Jewish identity and speak Hebrew freely.
“Budapest may be the only European capital city you can walk through without seeing any anti-Israel graffiti. There are no furious demonstrators waving Palestinian flags and chanting ‘From the river to the sea’ and no worries about possible harassment on the streets or at university campuses,” explains The Jewish Independent.
It’s rare to meet someone who is openly pro-Palestinian. One Palestinian businessman named Jozeph told CBN News earlier he likes his Hungarian Jewish friends but not Israelis, arguing that all of Israel is really Palestine.
The future of Hungarian–Israeli relations is now in question. Some believe ties will endure, while others warn a growing distance could emerge between the two allies.
Daniel Cohen from the Real Life Network posted on Instagram, “Hungary just made a massive mistake removing Viktor Orbán. Voters bought the bribe from the EU to install Peter Magyar, an opportunist backed by the entire EU propaganda machine and George Soros. For 16 years, Orbán stood like a firewall for things Europe stopped defending a long time ago—strong borders, national identity, and the courage to say ‘no’ to forced Islamic migration. Hungary is about to become the UK, Paris, Brussels, Spain, Germany. INVADED.”
