When evil goes on for too long, the hope that good will ever win begins to fade. When the abnormal from battle to battle wins the normal, disbelief that it is change has come it does not disappear even when its outlines become crystal clear.
That's right, supporters. Peter the Hungarian, when it was already clear that the opposition Tisa had beaten Viktor Orbán's Fides to a pulp and despite their fighting mood and optimism, it took some time for them to come to their senses and start opening the champagne bottles.
And yes, in this case, the evil is Orban, the Prime Minister of Hungary, who for 16 years spread lies and fear of migrants and whatnot, brought the media under his control, reduced civil liberties with changes in the law, organized witch hunts, developed a partnership economy, colluded with Vladimir Putin and Donald Trump on the project of breaking the European Union and liberal democracy.
The good was embodied in Peter Magyar, who promised to reset Hungary to pre-Dorban settings.
The image and appearance of the challenger
Victory in Hungary has its own name and surname: Peter the Hungarian (45). Visually, he was the exact opposite of Viktor Orban (62) at first glance. The challenger was young, lithe, he seemed like a modern, sporty guy, in contrast to the stocky ruler who was beginning to get tired and who no longer had anything new to pull from his worn sleeve.
Photo: AP Photo/Petr David JosekThe end of an era: Viktor Orbán admits defeat in the parliamentary elections
The Hungarian grew up politically within Orbán's Fidesz and knew well how the regime works from the inside and what its weaknesses are. When he decided to oppose a system steeped in corruption and declared an open war on liberal democracy, in 2024 he joined the center-right Tisza party, founded only in 2020. In just a few months, he came to its head and declared war on Viktor Orbán. In less than two years, he managed to get almost the entire opposition behind him.
The Hungarian did not get involved in explaining that the fear of migrants is irrational, that it is crazy to present Volodymyr Zelensky as a danger to Hungary and that the sons of Hungary will not have to pick up guns to fight against the Ukrainians, he did not get involved in discussions about who is a greater patriot and why - he avoided alienating Orbán's traditional voters. He focused his campaign on the down-to-earth problems that were increasingly bothering Hungarians: the stagnation of the economy, the spread of corruption and the collapse of the health care system.
Ideologically, he clearly opted for the European Union, in contrast to Orban, who profiled himself as a leader of supporters of the strengthening of nation states within the EU who resist the "dictatorship" of Brussels. On the basis of the punitive policy of the institutions of the Union, Hungary has over the years been deprived of about twenty billion euros from European funds.
The backbone of the success of the young, energetic Hungarian was young Hungarians who did not want their membership in Fidesz to be their ticket to the labor market. By campaigning tirelessly across Hungary, he managed to convince the voters that change is possible and that it depends only on them, so the turnout was a record 80 percent.
Encouragement for citizens of Serbia eager for change
Peter Magyar's victory goes beyond the borders of tiny Hungary. After a series of painful blows, it represents a wind at the back of advocates of liberal democracy and the strengthening of the European Union, which, despite all its weaknesses, has nothing better for the Europeans, and which Trump's America and Putin's Russia and China have also targeted.
It is also a heavy defeat of the ideas of European right-wingers, populists, demagogues and autocrats, among whom is the President of Serbia, Aleksandar Vučić, who is left without the only true ally within the EU and a partner in complex affairs.
And as for the citizens of Serbia who want to see the back of the progressive regime, the success of Magyarova Tisa represents fuel on the fire of rebellion, encourages motivation, instills hope and shows how an autocracy similar to the Serbian one can be defeated.
Peter Magjar is certainly not the prime minister of the dreams of social democratic and green voters, but he was a pragmatic solution to return Hungary to the European track and within the framework of the rule of law that guarantees equality and all civil and media freedoms.
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