Political director of the outgoing Hungarian prime minister and campaign chief of Fidesz Balázs Orbán gave his first interview since the governing parties suffered their biggest electoral defeat on Sunday, 12 April. Speaking to Mandiner, Orbán assessed the results, the possible reasons behind them, and laid out their strategy for the upcoming period in opposition.
Orbán acknowledged that the outcome came as a shock to the party’s base. ‘The result was devastating,’ he said, adding that despite extensive campaign efforts, ‘it is regrettable that this did not translate into results’.
In his assessment, the defeat stemmed from a combination of structural and contextual factors, with the deteriorating economic environment playing a central role. Orbán argued that the war, the energy crisis, and inflation had significantly shaped public sentiment, noting that ‘around 40 per cent of society was optimistic, and 60 per cent was not’.
Fidesz’s campaign strategy, he explained, was built on offering stability and security in an uncertain global environment. However, this message ultimately proved less compelling than the opposition’s. ‘The opponent’s offer was simple—that change is coming, and it will be better—and the majority of voters considered that to be a better option,’ he said.
‘Orbán rejected suggestions that the party’s messaging had failed to reach voters’
The Tisza Party secured a landslide victory on Sunday, winning a record 141 mandates in the 199-seat parliament, while Fidesz–KDNP was reduced to 52 seats. The only other party to enter the new National Assembly is the hard-right Mi Hazánk (Our Homeland), which won 6 mandates. The result brought an end to Viktor Orbán’s 16-year rule and has triggered an increasingly intense internal assessment within Fidesz, with some voices in the party pointing to campaign shortcomings and arguing that its messaging ultimately failed to resonate with a majority of voters.
Orbán rejected suggestions that the party’s messaging had failed to reach voters. ‘It cannot be said that our message did not reach the people,’ he stated, arguing instead that voters consciously opted for what he described as a ‘less defined’ alternative built more on hope than concrete policy proposals.
He also pointed to external factors influencing the campaign, claiming that ‘things happened during this campaign that had not happened before’, including alleged ‘threats’ and ‘financial pressure’. In addition, he highlighted what he described as an ‘unequal contest’ on social media platforms.
A decisive element of the outcome, according to Orbán, was the opposition’s ability to consolidate its support base. While Fidesz maintained its traditional electorate of around 2.3 million voters, he said, ‘3.1 million people voted uniformly for another alternative’. He added that ‘many of those who supported us in 2022 also moved to the other side’, describing this shift as a key factor in the result.
Reflecting on the campaign, Orbán also signalled that the team may have overlooked warning signs. ‘If we had looked more deeply into the research or mobilization data, we might have seen that an opposite scenario was also possible,’ he said, adding that the party remained confident in its strategy and ‘trusted in its own truth’.
On the political consequences of the election, Orbán stressed that the incoming Tisza Party government now bears full responsibility. ‘From this point on, the entire burden of governance rests with them,’ he said.
‘...in its current form, this is over’
Looking ahead, Orbán called for a comprehensive renewal of Fidesz, endorsing earlier remarks by Viktor Orbán. ‘A complete renewal is necessary,’ he said, arguing that ‘in its current form, this is over’ and that the party must transform into a broader political movement. He suggested that this process should involve individuals beyond professional politics and indicated that organizational restructuring could take place within the coming months.
Despite the defeat, Orbán insisted that the core attitudes of Fidesz voters remain unchanged. ‘Our voters have not changed,’ he said, maintaining that there continues to be demand for a political force prioritizing ‘peace and security’ in Hungary.
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