Péter Magyar Demands President Sulyok Resign After Election Victory

Péter Magyar, the incoming prime minister of Hungary whose TISZA party won more than 52% of the vote in the April 12 parliamentary election, met with President Tamás Sulyok at the Sándor Palace in Budapest on Wednesday and demanded his immediate resignation, calling him "unworthy of representing the unity of the Hungarian nation" and "unfit to serve as the guardian of legality." Magyar, 45, shared a photograph of the meeting on social media, tagging Sulyok directly and stating that the president was also "not fit to serve as a moral authority or a role model." Sulyok, a former ally of outgoing Prime Minister Viktor Orbán, told Magyar during the meeting that he would "consider" the request, according to Magyar's account of the exchange, which he described as otherwise amicable. Magyar warned that if Sulyok does not resign voluntarily following the formation of the new government, he would use his party's parliamentary majority to amend the constitution and other legislation to force him from office, along with other figures he described as "puppets" appointed by the Orbán government. The election victory ended 16 years of Orbán's governance, a tenure that became a reference point for illiberal conservative governance across Europe.

Magyar vows to shut down state media 'lie factory' Magyar appeared on Wednesday morning at the M1 state television channel and on Radio Kossuth — the first time he had been given airtime on Hungarian public media in roughly a year and a half, having last appeared on September 26, 2024, by his own account. He used the platform to announce that one of the first acts of his incoming government would be the suspension of state media news broadcasts, which he described as a "propaganda channel" and a "lie factory" that had caused "absolutely incredible damage to the Hungarian people." Magyar stated that the suspension would be temporary, pending the passage of a new media law, the creation of a new media regulatory authority, and the establishment of professional conditions for public media to function independently. „Every Hungarian deserves a public service media that broadcasts the truth.” — Péter Magyar via The Independent He added that he was aware no perfect press exists but that the current situation could not continue. The M1 presenter pushed back during the interview, disputing Magyar's claim that he had not been invited to appear, saying the channel had contacted him as recently as January 26 and had sent invitations for seven consecutive days before that. Magyar replied that he held no personal resentment, but maintained his characterization of the channel's coverage, noting that M1 had broadcast claims that his children do not speak to him, which he said was false.

Netanyahu calls Magyar, accepts Budapest anniversary invitation Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu spoke by telephone with Magyar on Wednesday in what both sides described as a cordial first contact, with each expressing interest in deepening bilateral ties. Netanyahu's office issued a statement saying the two leaders discussed maintaining the close relationship that had existed between Israel and Hungary during the Orbán era. Magyar invited Netanyahu to attend celebrations marking the 70th anniversary of the Hungarian Revolution, an invitation Netanyahu said he accepted. Netanyahu in turn proposed holding an intergovernmental meeting in Jerusalem. On Monday, Netanyahu had already congratulated Magyar on his election victory, though in the same statement he thanked his "dear friend" Orbán for having stood "firm" alongside Israel "in the face of unjust international defamation." The phone call followed a period in which Hungary under Orbán had been one of Israel's most reliable partners within the European Union, including hosting Netanyahu in Budapest in April 2025 despite an arrest warrant issued against him by the International Criminal Court for alleged war crimes and crimes against humanity in the Gaza Strip.

Viktor Orbán first came to power as prime minister in 1998, served until 2002, and returned to office in 2010. His Fidesz party governed Hungary continuously from 2010 until the April 2026 election, a period of 16 years during which critics and EU institutions repeatedly raised concerns about democratic backsliding, judicial independence, and press freedom. Hungary's membership in the EU became a source of sustained friction, with Brussels withholding billions of euros in funding over rule of law concerns. Péter Magyar emerged as a political figure only around two years before the 2026 election, according to reporting in source articles, making his landslide victory described as unprecedented in the history of modern Hungarian democracy.

Cabinet sworn in by mid-May, billions in EU funds at stake Magyar said his cabinet could be sworn in by mid-May 2026, and he indicated he intended to move quickly to implement reforms in order to avoid the loss of approximately 10 billion euros in EU pandemic recovery funding before an August deadline. Among the anti-corruption measures he outlined were joining the European Public Prosecutor's Office, restoring the independence of the judiciary and investigative authorities, and restoring media and academic freedoms. Magyar's victory also drew attention across Central Europe, with analysts and politicians in the Czech Republic and Slovakia noting that the result demonstrated populist leaders could be voted out of office. Czech Prime Minister Andrej Babis, who had previously called for Orbán's re-election, said after the result that he looked forward to working with Magyar. Slovak opposition leader Michal Simecka warned that if Slovak Prime Minister Robert Fico continued to favor confrontation with Brussels, Prague and Bratislava risked falling into regional isolation now that Budapest was shifting toward a pro-European course. The scene at the Sándor Palace on Wednesday also produced an unexpected moment: Magyar spotted Orbán alone on a nearby balcony, apparently consulting a document, filmed it, and posted the video to social media with the caption "absolute cinema," with a Linkin Park song overlaid.

10 (billion euros) — EU pandemic recovery funds at risk before August deadline

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