Hungarians vote in record numbers in election that could oust Orban, rattle Russia

Hungarians were voting on Sunday in an election that could end Prime Minister Viktor Orban's 16-year hold on power, rattle Russia and send shockwaves ‌through right-wing circles across the West, including U.S. President Donald Trump's White House.

Orban, a eurosceptic nationalist, has carved out a model of an "illiberal democracy" seen as a blueprint by Trump's Make America Great Again (MAGA) movement and its admirers in Europe.

But many Hungarians have grown weary of Orban, 62, after three years of economic stagnation and soaring living costs, along with reports of oligarchs close to the government amassing more wealth.

Opinion polls ​have shown Orban's Fidesz party trailing Peter Magyar's upstart centre-right opposition Tisza party by 7-9 percentage points, with Tisza at around 38-41%.

RECORD TURNOUT

Pollsters predicted a record voter turnout ​and data at 1300 GMT showed 66% of voters had cast their votes, up from 52.75% at the same time in the ⁠2022 election. Television footage showed long queues outside some voting stations in Budapest.

Magyar, after casting his vote in Budapest, said Hungarians would write history as they choose "between East and West," ​and urged voters to report any irregularities.

"Election fraud is a very serious crime," he added.

Magyar expressed confidence about the outcome, saying the only question was whether Tisza won a simple ​majority or a two-thirds majority in the 199-seat parliament that would allow it to amend Hungary's constitution.

Orban, who cast his vote in the same Budapest district and swept the last four elections, told reporters: "There is a constitution in Hungary and it needs to be followed. The decision of the people needs to be respected."

Four years ago, the OSCE Office for Democratic Institutions and Human Rights said that ballot had been ​run professionally but that an uneven playing field could have impacted the result.