Extraordinary news from #Hungary. Tisza vs. Fidesz: 51-36. According to the latest Medián poll, published in HVG, Peter Magyar's Tisza party is leading with 51% of the vote among decided voters, while Orbán's Fidesz is lagging behind with 36%.

Where there is a will, there is a way. Budapest will organise Hungary's Pride march on June 28 as a municipal event celebrating freedom. The move circumvents a recent law that allows police to ban LGBTQ marches. Since the march will be a municipal event, no permits from authorities are needed.

Ukraine is the new Soros. Rating the Hungarian Prime Minister’s anti-Ukraine propaganda messages from the past few days. 🔽🧵 Nr. 1. Simple and straightforward: „Ukraine is a dangerous country”.

New Russian-style law by the Hungarian government. New cover by us at HVG

Over 80 editors from leading European news outlets signed a petition calling for the scrapping of legislation in Hungary that aims to restrict foreign-funded media and rights groups, a step critics say is meant to stifle criticism of the government. Thank you for your support!

Budapest's bridges have always been symbolic sites of protest in the Hungarian capital. Now the government has come up with a plan to end what it calls "traffic disruption". My piece for the EUObserver. euobserver.com/rule-of-law/...

Legislation deluxe, Hungarian style: Adopt a law that prevents people from assembling freely. When people protest against it, create another law to prevent protesters from blocking bridges in order to defend the rights of those who are not protesting.🤷‍♀️ www.reuters.com/world/europe...

On the day Hungary left the ICC, and the Israeli PM visited Hungary, about 70 journalists were invited to the press conference of Benjamin Netanyahu and Viktor Orbán in Budapest. Guess how many questions were allowed in the press room? None. Zero. Nil.

‼️BREAKING: #Hungary quits the International Criminal Court, on the exact day Benjamin Netanyahu, wanted by the ICC for war crimes & crimes against humanity, arrives in Budapest. The move was announced by Gergely Gulyás, head of the PM's office.

What did 14 years of autocratic populism produce in Hungary? Poverty and corruption www.theatlantic.com/magazine/arc...

❗SCOOP: Political asylum is not enough; Hungary has now changed its laws to protect former Polish deputy justice minister Marcin Romanowski from being handed over to Polish authorities.

22 embassies in Hungary released a joint statement on the Hungarian legislation, restricting the right of peaceful assembly and freedom of expression. Note that for the first time, the U.S. Embassy in Budapest is not among the signatories.

„Pride today, everyone else tomorrow.” Second protest in downtown Budapest in a week against the banning of Pride. This time, demonstrators blockaded Ferenciek tere, near Elizabeth bridge. Photo: Túry Gergely/HVG

⛔️Speaker of the #Hungarian parliament imposed a record fine of 82 million HUF (180 000 EUR) on opposition MPs who lit up smoke flares in Parliament during the vote on the banning of Pride. The 6 MPs are also barred from entering Parliament until May. hvg.hu/itthon/20250...

Here is the video footage of the event: youtu.be/497zTF0XwmE?...

‼️JUST IN: #Hungary's Parliament (with the 2/3 majority of ruling party Fidesz-KDNP) voted yes to ban the Pride march and impose fines on organisers and people attending the event. Opposition party Momentum burnt smoke candles in protest.

Here we go! Hungarian government has submitted bill that would not only ban Pride, but would also impose heavy fines on anyone who attends. The bill was submitted at 23:59 on Sunday, and was already discussed in the justice committee of Parliament at 10:00 am. www.reuters.com/world/europe...

For those who wondering what to expect in Hungary leading up to the 2026 elections: PM Viktor Orbán has just compared his political opponents – including judges (!), journalists, NGOs and politicians - to bugs who must be eliminated.

"Polak wegier dwa bratanki" translated by #Hungarian FM Szijjártó: "Radosław Sikorski is one of the most vicious pro-war politicians in Europe, so it is not surprising that he had a clash with Elon Musk, who represents a pro-peace US government". How is your day going?

Hungarians owning multiple passports whose work the government deems to threaten “national sovereignty” can be expelled from the country, according to a draft constitutional amendment. www.bloomberg.com/news/article...

❗️The #Hungarian government is set to ban the Budapest Pride march. The right of children to physical and mental development will be enshrined in the constitution. "There will be no Pride in the future as we know it, city marches do not serve the protection of children", minister Gulyás said.

What happens when you exercise your right to freedom of speech at a protest for judicial indepence in #Hungary: 1. Well-known writer of government paper starts listing participating judges by name. 2. Pro-gov. channel TV2 spreads fake news by stating no judges attended the event.

“Justice is not for sale” In an unprecedented move, thousands of judges, court staff and supporters marched to the ministry of justice in #Budapest on Saturday to protest for judicial independence, freedom of expression for judges and better pay. Photos: Zsolt Reviczky/HVG

New laws to sanction civil society, LGBTQ people, high chance of Budapest Pride being banned, fight against “foreign influence”, and “a territory under the name of Ukraine” – this was Hungarian prime minister Viktor Orbán’s ‘state of the nation’ speech in 2025. Brace yourselves for the worst. 1/8🧵

This Saturday, #Hungarian judges will be demonstrating for the first time in the country's modern history. More than 4000 people have responded to the event that will start at 1pm in Kossuth tér for the "independence of the judiciary". See the link: facebook.com/events/s/iga...

For the third time in a row, #Hungary is the EU’s most corrupt country, according to Transparency International’s 2024 Corruption Perception Index. To understand why, I recommend watching The Dynasty, a documentary about Viktor Orban's family affairs: www.youtube.com/watch?si=loY...

The Dynasty. Wealth, power and family - how Viktor Orbán’s son-in-law became one of the richest men in Hungary. A must-see documentary by investigative portal @direkt36.bsky.social with English subtitles. youtu.be/bZ4SXv9qJHM?...

Police detained reporters of #Hungarian outlet Telex, because they waited in a parking lot to interview PM Orbán. First, they were sent inside, where it not would have been possible to ask questions. Then their accreditation was revoked. This is #PressFreedom in Hungary: youtu.be/itEX4t8dGVc?...

🧑‍⚖️It is confirmed. For the first time, #Hungarian judges will hold a demonstration in Budapest on 22 February, protesting for the independence of the judiciary. #ruleoflaw #judiciary

Hungary was eagerly waiting for the “good news” PM Viktor Orban promised to announce today. Only to find out “the state will soon pay the interest rates back after retail treasury bonds”. I’m sure happy we haven’t gone bankrupt but isn’t that how bonds are supposed to work?

For those who were fed up with inauguration day, some fun: Have you heard about the music video that is taking Hungary by storm, and has been viewed 4 million times in a matter of days (in a country of less than 10 million)?

“Hungary is a living example of how vulnerable democratic institutions actually are and how easy it is for ill-intentioned leaders to exercise control over citizens. And that’s on steroids when they control all of the media ecosystem” www.nytimes.com/2025/01/16/m...

In @verfassungsblog.de Tamás Matusik, a senior judge and the former President of the National Judicial Council 🇭🇺, warns how judges' recent outrage over planned structural reforms may have created the political opportunity to silence dissenting voices further. verfassungsblog.de/targeting-di...

Judges holding demonstrations, writing letters of dissent. Resignations, threats. The National Judicial Council annulling a controversial agreement made with the government. What is going on in #Hungary's judiciary? Let me explain. Brace yourselves, thread is coming.⬇️

My favourite team behind @europeanspod.bsky.social are in for something exciting - and need a bit of help. Award-winning independent journalism is always worth supporting.

Who is Antal Rogán,Minister in Charge of the Hungarian Prime Minister Orban’s Cabinet Office? He has never-before-seen control over many government entities, including the National Communications Office, the Digital Government Agency, and the Hungarian Tourism Agency.

‼️The U.S. Department of the Treasury’s Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) is sanctioning Head of Cabinet of the Prime Minister Antal Rogan, a senior Hungarian government official, for his involvement in corruption in Hungary.

It's the last day of 2024, which also means Hungary will lose €1.04 Billion of EU funds at midnight, after failing to meet requriments until the end of the year deadline. www.ft.com/content/fe89...

❗️Confirmed! Marcin Romanowski, former deputy justice minister of Poland granted political asylum in Hungary, according to government minister Gergely Gulyás.

Viktor Orbán hinted at „granting political asylum to a Polish citizen” soon at a closed event, reports Telex. It is not known who the person could be, but sources of the paper guessed it could be Marcin Romanowski of PiS. No official source (Polish or Hungarian) confirmed the news.

Is Peter Magyar a threat to Viktor Orbán? The regime is doing all it can to damage his credibility – but the young challenger’s popularity keeps rising. It was an honour to write this opinion piece for The @theguardian.com www.theguardian.com/commentisfre...

As someone, whose father was born in a tiny Hungarian village next to the Romanian border, I cannot emphasize the importance of this decision enough. Crossing the border without checks is a dream come true for millions, including ethnic Hungarians. That's what the EU stands for.

❗️Poland reacts to what seemed to be a likely takeover of TVN by Orbán proxies and/or Czechia’s PPF group. “TVN and Polsat… will be placed on the list of strategic companies that are subject to protection against... a takeover that is dangerous from the point of view of the Polish state's interests.”

A few days after meeting DonaldTrump in Florida, #Hungarian PM Viktor Orban confirms he spoke with Russian President Vladimir Putin on the phone for an hour this morning. The reason: "We we must use all diplomatic means at our disposal to promote a ceasefire and peace".

Peace mission 2.0 Hungarian PM Viktor Orban meeting Donald Trump and Elon Musk in Mar-a-Lago again. Don’t forget Orban is still holding the rotating presidency of the EU

❗️#Hungarian CIA reportedly spied on EU officials. Officials from EU anti-fraud office were allegedly followed, wiretapped and had their laptops hacked by Hungary’s intelligence agency. Original story by @szabolcspanyi.bsky.social www.politico.eu/article/hung...

❗Péter Szabó, President of #Hungarian Judicial Council resigned, just before a vote of confidence. Under his lead, the Council adopted an agreement proposed by the Justice Ministry, linking the payrise of judges to judicial reforms, endangering independence of the judiciary.

For those who missed it: last week's bombshell surprise in 🇭🇺 is our poll by Median. Péter Magyar’s Tisza party is well ahead of ViktorOrban's Fidesz: ⚫️voting age population: 34 vs 27% ⚫️committed voters: 44 vs 36%

Hi! I am still on X, but you can also follow me here for some good hungarysplaining.