Hungarian Conservative

This weekend’s race promises excitement on the track, with four teams appearing to be in contention for victory. As a unique circuit often likened to ‘Monaco without the walls,’ the Hungaroring might disrupt the usual competitive hierarchy.

The new regulation does not apply to all electric scooters: scooters weighing more than 25 kilograms require insurance if their design speed exceeds 14 km/h, and all scooters require insurance if their design speed exceeds 25 km/h, regardless of weight. It is not yet clear how authorities will determine the design speed of a given vehicle on the spot.

Katalin Karikó and Ferenc Krausz had seen the designs and ‘gave their blessing’ to the project. The creation of the Wall of Nobel Laureates, designed by Péter Csuth and realized by the Colourful City Group, was supported by the Hungarian government.

The Hungarian team won the combined event in 11:56.66 minutes, surpassing the second-best Ukrainians by 36 seconds.

The Hungarian Defence Forces’ Basic Non-Commissioned Officer Course (AAT), a one-year programme, has equipped the newly graduating non-commissioned officers with various skills. With these capabilities, they will not only be able to fulfill their leadership duties but also serve the nation in a manner befitting and worthy of an NCO, Command Sergeant Major of the Hungarian Defence Forces Zoltán Kaszab stated during an internal inauguration ceremony held at the barracks’ assembly ground. This year’s NCO inauguration will be held on Saturday, 13 July, at Heroes’ Square in Budapest.

After the three-day recount, it was confirmed that Karácsony received 371,538 votes, while Vitézy received 371,245.

The Metrodome Group, active in the Budapest real estate market since 1996, is opening its first representative office in Israel to offer investment opportunities in the Hungarian capital to Israeli investors. Among the many positive arguments in favour of Budapest, one that stands out is that Hungary remains one of the safest countries for the Jewish community in Europe.

In December last year a new law created a distinct category for ‘EU minorities’ in Ukraine (such as the Hungarian and Romanian ethnic minorities) that now have access to more privileges than for instance the Russian minority. Later, as a sign of goodwill to better relations, Foreign Minister Péter Szijjártó visited Ukraine. Now, with the meeting between Orbán and Zelenskyy the two country’s relationship is officially warming up. If in the long-term Budapest does manage to considerably contribute to peace between Russia and Ukraine, as it clearly intends to, it might have a long-lasting positive impact on bilateral relations.

Budapest residents and tourists visiting the capital will enjoy the most spectacular fireworks display ever. More people will be able to enjoy the play of fire and light than before: instead of the previous 4.3 km, it will be visible for over five kilometres along the Danube, extending all the way to Margaret Island, and this time covering three central city bridges instead of two.

In his regular Friday interview with public Kossuth radio Orbán emphasized that Hungary, as the rotating president of the European Union, does not have the mandate to negotiate peace in the Russo–Ukrainian war on behalf of the EU. However, he can assess the situation to understand each party’s position.

More than 20 cyclists will represent Hungary, for whom the event is important to accumulate international ranking points. The slow start of the Hungarian stage will take place on Saturday at Carl Lutz quay, in front of the Vogue event ship, and after a sharp start in Budakeszi, the peloton will cover 138.5 kilometres to the finish line set up at the Pannonhalma Abbey.

On Sunday, 30 June 2024 Prime Minister Viktor Orbán declared that a new era in European politics has begun. At a press conference held jointly with Herbert Kickl and Andrej Babiš PM Orbán outlined the vision for a revamped European political alliance. The new political family aims to reshape the landscape of European governance and address the pressing issues faced by the continent, the Hungarian prime minister said.

According to the Economist Intelligence Unit’s Global Liveability Index 2024, Budapest is in the top five in the category of cities that have improved the most over the past twelve months. The Hungarian capital scored 92.0 out of 100 points, moving up seven places to rank 32nd.

The Ratha-yātrā Chariot Festival will be held for the 28th time in Budapest this Saturday; it will later merge with the India Festival held in City Park on the same day. The programmes are free to attend.

On 21 June a joint press conference was held by UAE Minister of Economy Abdulla bin Touq Al Marri and Hungarian Minister of Foreign Affairs and Trade Péter Szijjártó. During the conference, an agreement to deepen bilateral relations through agricultural cooperation was announced. The ministers also highlighted the significance of the New Millennium Centre construction project in Budapest, which is backed by a substantial investment of 5 billion EUR from the UAE.

‘“There is not enough money in the world for us to put our children and grandchildren into the hands of LGBT activists,” said Orbán earlier this month. We are all in a very bad place when basic moral sanity like that is an act of uncommon courage…It is unlikely that Orbán will show up at the American ambassador’s queer picnic. In civilizational terms, the prime minister will be missing a tea party on the deck of the Titanic.’ 

Trading first started on the Budapest Stock Exchange on 18 January 1864, but the exchange was dismantled by the communist regime in 1948. After the regime change of 1989, securities trading restarted at last on 21 June 1990, exactly 34 years ago today.

Barna Pál Zsigmond went on Hungarian public media to talk about Hungary’s upcoming presidency of the Council of the European Union. He named restoring Europe’s economic competitiveness and advancing the Western Balkan nations towards EU accession as the administration’s two major agenda points for the six-month presidency.

The famous Hungarian ice cream and gelato chef, winner of the Gelato Festival 2024, runs the Fazekas cake shop in the 16th district of Budapest. He was placed #2 in the same ranking in 2022.

According to the graphic shared by the Prime Minister’s political director Balázs Orbán, Hungary’s slogan will be ‘Make Europe Great Again,’ or ‘MEGA’ for short, for the upcoming presidency of the Council of the European Union. This is an obvious allusion to US President Donald Trump’s campaign slogan ‘Make America Great Again,’ which he is using for his presidential campaign as well.

Gergely Kovács, the newly elected Budapest 12th district mayor of the Two-Tailed Dog Party, has vowed to remove the statue of the mythical turul bird located in the vicinity of the mayor’s office. He cited the monument’s connection to Nazism as his reason—however, not many other people see that connection.

On 27 May 2024 the Bulgarian President paid a visit to the Hungarian capital to meet with the President of Hungary, Tamás Sulyok, and Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbán. These meetings have resulted in the commitment of both sides to develop economic and cultural cooperation, keep the current arrangement in natural gas transit from Bulgaria, and the support for the Hungarian agenda for its upcoming presidency over the Council of the European Union.

Last year, the rental prices for centrally located properties in Budapest increased by 17 per cent compared to 2022, placing the Hungarian capital in the mid-range among EU capitals. The survey examined the rental prices of flats typically used by expatriates, that is, the prices of well-maintained, well-equipped central apartments, either built or significantly modernized in the past ten years.

The recount, which was conducted publicly, and began this morning in the aula of the NVB headquarters, was concluded in the afternoon, but the members of the National Election Commission deliberated for hours afterwards, before finally announcing the result at around 8 p.m. It turned out there were indeed hundreds of ballots invalidated erroneously which should have been considered valid, as Vitézy and his team suspected. The recount established that ultimately Gergely Karácsony received just 41 more votes than Dávid Vitézy.

In his remarks at the Mathias Corvinus Collegium Donald Trump Jr stated that American conservatives regard the Hungarian Prime Minister as a great leader who puts ‘Hungary first’. In his address and the subsequent discussion the businessman touched upon the upcoming American elections, US domestic politics, and global issues, including the Middle Eastern conflict and the war in Ukraine.

Budapest mayoral candidate Dávid Vitézy argued that the unusually high number of invalidated ballots are grounds for a recount. 24,592 votes were tossed out in the election, while incumbent Gergely Karácsony only won the extremely tight race by 324 votes.

The documentary will be premiered to the public on 14 June at the MOZ.GO Hungarian Film Festival, and is also expected to be available on streaming platforms.

The analysts invited to assess the outcome of the EP and municipal elections noted that the result the ruling parties achieved on Sunday would likely have translated into a two-thirds majority in a parliamentary election.

Viktor Orbán expressed gratitude to all Hungarian voters who decided to participate in the dual election. He noted that the turnout for the municipal and European Parliament elections on Sunday was record high in Hungary, reaching 57 per cent.

After a Vitézy lead until after midnight, Karácsony overtook and the results at 4 a.m. showed the closest election in the history of the city. Karácsony ended up winning by as few as 324 votes.