Hungary’s main opposition leader Péter Magyar held a campaign event in Budapest on Sunday, calling on the government to respect people’s privacy after what he described as blackmail and a honeytrap set up by the government to discredit him.
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According to opinion polls, Magyar’s Tisza Party is leading Viktor Orbán’s ruling Fidesz party, ahead of the parliamentary elections on the 12th of April.
Orbán, a far-right conservative politician, has been governing Hungary since 2010 with an absolute majority.
Magyar said earlier this week that he was blackmailed by government figures with a sex tape showing him and his former partner, secretly recorded in a Budapest flat in 2024. So far, the video has not been released, but one picture showing a bedroom has spread online.
“If you want Viktor Orbán to spy in your bedroom, then feel free to vote for the ruling Fidesz party,” said Magyar.
He added that Orbán’s party is afraid of losing power and is ready to do disgusting things to discredit the Tisza opposition.
“If they can disclose my private life, they can do the same to others,” asserted Magyar.
The opposition leader, whose Tisza party leads most national opinion polls, called on Orbán to participate in an electoral debate.
‘Hungary will not be dragged into war’
Magyar appeared to target young voters with his campaign event on Saturday, which followed a speech delivered by the Hungarian leader.
The main opposition leader described the upcoming April vote as the “biggest party of the decade” and urged young people to mark the election date in their calendars.
The opposition Tisza party candidate also rejected the government’s narrative, which claimed that an opposition win would drag Hungary into war.
Magyar promised his government would reject military conscription, noting that his party condemns Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine, but stressing that Budapest will not be dragged into the conflict.
He also vowed that, in the event of winning the elections, he would keep the barrier at Hungary’s southern border to prevent illegal migration.
Magyar also announced that his party does not support the European Union’s migration pact or Ukraine’s fast-track accession to the bloc.
The opposition candidate also addressed reports about a recent chemical leak that occurred in a battery factory near Budapest, with the level of toxic substances exceeding government-allowed thresholds.
“We are making full, independent, and public measurements mandatory. Internal measurements and data from factories cannot remain secret,” he said.
Magyar met with EU leaders at Munich Security Conference
Magyar spent Friday and Saturday at the Munich Security Conference, where he held discussions with 12 European leaders, including German Chancellor Friedrich Merz, Austrian Chancellor Karl Nehammer, Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk and Croatian Prime Minister Andrej Plenković.
The Tisza party leader said he informed the leaders about his plans in the event of winning the elections.
“The most important task of the future Tisza government will be to bring back the EU funds due to the Hungarian people,” Magyar said after his talks in Munich.
He added that his government will aim to adopt strict anti-corruption measures, ensure the independence of the courts, freedom of the press and higher education institutions.
He also shared that he made clear his position on Ukraine’s accelerated EU bid to leaders in his talks.
