"...today’s pro-democracy governments discover booby traps laid by their predecessors and confront all kinds of veto players. But Poland’s experience has been instructive, highlighting the need for bold action and the right support from external actors."

Hungary's election on Sunday may well be the most important European vote this year. @ecfr.eu's New Politics Project is following it closely. ecfr.eu/npp

In her latest for GMF, @veghzsuzsanna.bsky.social argues that endorsements from foreign friends may not be enough to win reelection for the Hungarian prime minister. Read more: https://bit.ly/4dGgeuQ

𝗨𝗽𝗰𝗼𝗺𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗘𝘃𝗲𝗻𝘁: Hungary After the Ballot: Change, Continuity, or Contestation? 🗓️ Monday, 13 April 2026 ⏰ 10:00am-11:00am ET | 4:00pm-5:00pm CET 📍Online Speakers: Daniel Hegedüs, Bulcsu Hunyadi, Zsuzsanna Végh and Melissa Hooper. 🔗 Register: https://bit.ly/3PUvtGI

Endorsements from foreign friends may not be enough to win reelection for Fidesz. While building his transnational illiberal network, Orbán seemingly has become detached from domestic realities. My two cents for @gmfus.bsky.social ahead of the election. ➡️ www.gmfus.org/news/reckoni...

Our new pre-election polling reveals that Hungarians see a need for a “different” relationship with the EU, but divergences remain on Ukraine. Here are the key takeaways 👇 ecfr.eu/article/why-...

If you want to read about the Hungarian election in Italian, @ottolanza.bsky.social has you covered ⤵️

🇭🇺 Hungary’s parliamentary election on April 12 is becoming the most consequential since Viktor Orbán’s Fidesz party returned to power in 2010. In her op-ed for @justsecurity.org, GMF’s @veghzsuzsanna.bsky.social outlines the stakes for Hungary, the US and the EU. Read it: https://bit.ly/3OusZOG

"He will not be an easy partner." @veghzsuzsanna.bsky.social warns that a Peter Magyar victory in #Hungary would not guarantee smooth relations with the EU. More on #F24Debate ➡️ https://go.france24.com/LdC

This is an absolutely exhaustive primer for the Hungarian elections. In Polish, but easy enough to get the gist via translation software.

🇭🇺 Hungary is about to have its most competitive election since 2010, but the system is marred with distortions. In my interview for OKO.press, we discussed with Paulina Pacula what may unfold on and around election day. 📰 Read it here (in Polish, no paywall): oko.press/wybory-na-we...

🇭🇺 GMF's Zsuzsanna Vegh joined France 24 to discuss the latest developments around Hungary's upcoming high-stakes election and what the results could mean for Europe. Watch: https://bit.ly/47NQcC9

"EU leaders have spent 15 years treating Orbán as an anomaly to be managed rather than an existential threat to be confronted."

📺 Last night I joined @france24.com to discuss the broader context of the Hungarian election. I spoke of VP J.D. Vance's Budapest visit, how PM Orbán transformed Fidesz into a far right force, what to make of his alignment with Moscow & Washington, and if the Patriots are in any way united.

📣 𝗨𝗽𝗰𝗼𝗺𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗘𝘃𝗲𝗻𝘁: Hungary After the Ballot: Change, Continuity, or Contestation? 🗓️ Monday, 13 April 2026 ⏰ 10:00am-11:00am ET | 4:00pm-5:00pm CET 📍Online 🔗 Register: https://bit.ly/3PUvtGI

⚠️ Hungary’s Election Could End Orbán’s Rule — But Will It End His Power? The election offers a real-world stress test of how resilient entrenched illiberal systems are when confronted with electoral vulnerability. ➡️ My article for @justsecurity.org: www.justsecurity.org/135860/hunga...

Hungary’s parliamentary election on April 12 is becoming the most competitive and consequential since Viktor Orbán’s Fidesz party returned to power in 2010. @veghzsuzsanna.bsky.social outlines the stakes for #Hungary, the US and the EU: www.justsecurity.org/135860/hunga...

🗳️ What is at stake for the EU in the Hungarian election? Whether it will continue to have a Russian Trojan horse among its ranks or a new government that treats its European allies as partners. I spoke to @robschmitz.bsky.social on @npr.org's All Things Considered. 🎧 www.npr.org/2026/04/05/n...

What happens in Hungary does not stay in Hungary, says Bloomberg. I was interviewed about the Orbán regime, how we got where we are, and why the April Hungarian election matters for Europe. We go through all that in 10 minutes with Zoltán Simon and Thomas Escritt. ➡️ www.youtube.com/watch?v=zp87...

GMF’s Zsuzsanna Vegh told AFP that another Orban win "would mean the continuation of the current course, where Hungary acts as a spoiler, blocking common European action and limiting the EU's ability to speak with one voice.” 🔗 Read the full piece on Hungary’s election: https://yhoo.it/4bQiLkE

💥In multiple phone calls, Hungary’s foreign minister provided his Russian counterpart with strategic information on critical EU issues and coordinated efforts to delist sanctioned companies, banks, and oligarchs’ relatives. @vsquare.bsky.social @occrp.org

Great @financialtimes.com interview of @veghzsuzsanna.bsky.social by @gideonrachman.bsky.social about the Hungarian elections. www.ft.com/content/7309...

My new study is out with @feps-europe.eu. "Laboratories of Counter-Hegemony: Orbán, Trump and the Transatlantic Far-Right Ecosystem" maps the infrastructure that has turned a small Central European country into a launchpad for reorganizing the Western right. 🧵 1/9 👉 feps-europe.eu/publication/...

💥Not how one wants to be featured in the @nytimes.com, but I’m glad a US audience sees what’s happening in this small country’s wild election campaign. As with other Orbán-related news, here's my warning to US colleagues: Orbán's actions still serve as a blueprint for Trump/MAGA.

Hungary’s foreign intelligence services monitored private conversations of the investigative reporter Szabolcs Panyi, he alleged yesterday in an interview with POLITICO after being accused of espionage. Read more 👇

Two more weeks until the Hungarian election! We discussed with @gideonrachman.bsky.social @financialtimes.com if this will bring the end of Orban's rule, why the opposition is on the rise, what Fidesz's close ties with Russia means for Europe and what may be different. 🎧 www.ft.com/content/ef9b...

#Podcastvandedag Viktor Orbán has been a thorn for the EU and a favourite of Donald Trump. But his party is now behind in the polls ahead of next month’s Hungarian elections.  But this is not a done deal! @gideonrachman.bsky.social @veghzsuzsanna.bsky.social podcasts.apple.com/nl/podcast/t...

📌 March 19, 3:00 PM CET / 10:00 AM ET 💡 I look forward to discussing the Hungarian election campaign & how the information environment it unfolds in shapes the political realities in the country. Join us at @visegradinsight.bsky.social's panel today! Register: visegradinsight.eu/online-event...

One month till the Hungarian election. Can Tisza's lead in the polls translate into victory? Can Fidesz's grip on power keep Orbán in office? We discussed this w/ @editzgut.bsky.social @ericmaurice.bsky.social & Corina Stratulat, hosted by @epc-official.bsky.social www.youtube.com/watch?v=uBVI...

Magyar is a "sovereignist politician," says Zsuzsanna Vegh, an expert in Central European politics at the German Marshall Fund of the United States.

📌 March 12 (Thu) 2:00 PM CET | Online With a month to go till the Hungarian election, we discuss w/ @ericmaurice.bsky.social & Corina Stratulat @epc-official.bsky.social & Edit Zgut-Przybylska @ceudeminst.bsky.social what scenarios await the country & the EU. Register: www.epc.eu/events/hunga...

🇭🇺 Hungary votes: towards a new era? One month before the 12 April election, Péter Magyar’s Tisza challenges Viktor Orbán’s Fidesz. What is at stake — and how should the EU prepare? Register 👇 www.epc.eu/events/hunga...

🇩🇪 German Chancellor Friedrich Merz’s third visit to Washington was overtaken by the unfolding war in the Middle East, but GMF’s Bennet Nicolaisen argues that Merz emerged unscathed.

🇭🇺 GMF’s Zsuzsanna Végh told the Guardian: “Effectively, Ukraine is portrayed as a main enemy. This is not just about Ukraine per se, but it fits into the standard strategy of the governing party, of mobilising its electorate through generating fear in society.”

This Friday, I'll be speaking at the symposium "Make Illiberalism Great Again" in Regensburg, exploring how a small state punches far above its weight globally. Organized by @sonjapriebus.bsky.social & @sudosteuropa.bsky.social, I'm glad to join @veghzsuzsanna.bsky.social and Ivana Ranković. 1/6

Curious about "Make Illiberalism Great Again - How the Orbán Government is Forging Transnational Alliances"? Join us for the event organized by @sudosteuropa.bsky.social and me on 27 February, 3 p.m. online 👉https://www.sogde.org/de/events/symposion-2026/

💡 New event video 🎙️Batuhan Eren (Scuola Normale Superiore), @caterinafr.bsky.social @sciencespo-cee.bsky.social, Sylvia Kritzinger (Uni Vienna) & @veghzsuzsanna.bsky.social @gmfus.bsky.social explores how illiberal actors shape politics in Austria, Italy & France 👉 www.youtube.com/watch?v=l-42...

Join us in Regensburg or online on Feb 27 (Friday)! I'll talk about Fidesz's allience building in Europe, but we will also cover its transatlantic networking and influence in the Western Balkans. Details: sogde.org/de/events/sy...

🌍 With two months until Hungary's next parliamentary election, time to take a look at what the foreign policy offer of Tisza, the main opposition party leading the polls ahead of Fidesz, would mean for the EU. Read my piece published by the New Politics Project of @ecfr.eu ecfr.eu/article/tisz...

After nearly 16 years of Fidesz rule, the centre-right Tisza party stands a chance of winning Hungary’s April election. Under their rule, Budapest would work with Europe, not against it, writes Zsuzsanna Végh. @ecfrpower.bsky.social 🔍Check out the situation in Hungary: https://bit.ly/3Mf4Evj

Delighted to announce the launch of the New Politics Project at @ecfr.eu. Led by me in Berlin and Piotr Buras in Warsaw, it will 1) research how volatility, fragmentation & populism are reshaping European foreign policies, 2) build a resilient agenda for a stronger, autonomous Europe. ecfr.eu/npp

📽️ Have you missed our concluding conference mapping the illiberal challenge to liberal democracy in Europe held at the Central European University @weareceu.bsky.social earlier this month? ☝️ Worry not!

What will be the fall-out for Europe's far-right leaders who turned on Trump over his threats to seize Greenland? Listen to my report @theworld.org with 🙏 @catherinedevries.bsky.social @ieuniversity.bsky.social @scottlucas.bsky.social @veghzsuzsanna.bsky.social @gmfus.bsky.social tiny.cc/8f8y001

US threats over Greenland has sparked a rift with populist party leaders in Europe who have long been Trump allies. How long will it last and is Trump keeping score? @scottlucas.bsky.social @catherinedevries.bsky.social @veghzsuzsanna.bsky.social reflect in my report up shortly on @theworld.org

📢 AUTHLIB webinar How do illiberals challenge democracy in Austria, Italy & France? 🗓️ Jan 26 |🕒 10:00 CET 🎙️Batuhan Eren (Scuola Normale Superiore), @caterinafr.bsky.social @sciencespo-cee.bsky.social, Sylvia Kritzinger (Uni Vienna) & @veghzsuzsanna.bsky.social @gmfus.bsky.social 👉 t.ly/DdE4e

📣 𝗨𝗽𝗰𝗼𝗺𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗩𝗶𝗿𝘁𝘂𝗮𝗹 𝗘𝘃𝗲𝗻𝘁: European Responses to the Shrinking Spaces of Democracy 🗓️ Tuesday, 20 January 2026 ⏰ 09:00–10:30 ET / 15:00–16:30 CET 📍Online 🔗 Register here: www.gmfus.org/event/europe...

🔖 We kicked off the day with AUTHLIB's consortium head, Zsolt Enyedi @zsolt.bsky.social @weareceu.bsky.social introducing the research focus of the project & @veghzsuzsanna.bsky.social @gmfus.bsky.social highlighting some of the main achivements of the past 3.5 years.

💥Our AUTHLIB project studying illiberalism in Europe is slowly wrapping up. Starting today, we are discussing some of the main findings of this 3.5-year project at CEU @weareceu.bsky.social in Budapest. 😀 Exciting two days ahead!

Here's ECFR’s most popular reads of 2025, reflecting stark and changing dynamics of the world. Trump has been back in the White House for a whole year, Russia is still waging war in Ukraine and Europeans are trying to reassert their influence in a multipolar world. Read more:https://bit.ly/48XCqMS

🌍 Three days left to apply to the 2026 Transatlantic Inclusion Leaders Network (TILN) cohort! Are you ready to lead change and build inclusive communities across the Atlantic?