Orban Re-elected Fidesz Leader Despite Election Defeat
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- Fidesz re-elected Viktor Orban as party leader with 729 of 737 delegates voting in favor, though he ran unopposed at Saturday's party congress reported by state news agency MTI.
- The vote came after Fidesz's April 12 election loss to Peter Magyar's Tisza party, which secured a two-thirds parliamentary majority and came to power in May.
- Orban, 62, told delegates "I do not give up, I never, never, never, never, never give up" and acknowledged taking full responsibility for the party's defeat — the first internal criticism he has faced since sweeping to power in 2010.
- Since taking power, Magyar's government dropped Orban's veto against Ukraine's EU membership, allowing accession talks to resume in Luxembourg, and the EU announced it would unlock 16.4 billion euros ($19bn) of the 18 billion euros previously frozen over democratic backsliding.
- A May Publicus Institute poll showed Tisza at 55% support (up from 53% in the election), while Fidesz fell to 17% — down from 39% at the vote.
Why it matters: Orban now leads Fidesz as an opposition party for the first time in 16 years, with polling showing the party collapsing from 39% to 17% since the election. Meanwhile Magyar's government is actively unwinding Orban's legacy — reversing the Ukraine EU veto, unlocking €16.4 billion in frozen EU funds, and moving to remove Orban-appointed officials like President Tamas Sulyok.
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