Hungary election campaigns enter final stretch as Orbán fights to remain in power – Europe live

in Budapest

Helló Budapestről!

Or, to those of you inexplicably less fluent in Hungarian: hello from Budapest!

The Hungarian parliament and Kossuth Lajos tér in central Budapest, days before the parliamentary election on 12 April. Photograph: Jakub Krupa/The Guardian

It’s a beautiful if slightly chilly morning here in the Hungarian capital as we enter the final hours of the campaign before this Sunday’s parliamentary vote that could see the end of Viktor Orbán’s 16 years in power.

When you look at the polls, they are a bit all over the place – particularly depending on their, erm, affiliation and proximity to the ruling party – but all independent pollsters appear to suggest that Péter Magyar’s Tisza party is on course for victory on Sunday.

But there is plenty time before then, with a number of voters still undecided or not sure if they are even going to vote, despite the expected record turnout.

In his last rallies, Magyar warned his supporters against complacency, stressing the need to fight for every single vote and to get everyone to come out on Sunday.

Péter Magyar, the leader of the Tisza party, holds a campaign rally alongside local MP candidates in Győr, Hungary. Photograph: Balint Szentgallay/NurPhoto/Shutterstock

Meanwhile, Orbán argued that “no election is decided until the people decide it,” and insisted he still expected a victory on Sunday.

Let’s see how it goes.

We will be bringing you updates from Budapest and beyond to get you a sense of what is the feeling on the ground in Hungary.

It’s Friday, 10 April 2026, it’s Jakub Krupa here, and this is Europe Live.

Good morning.