Hungary has ended an era. After sixteen years in power, Viktor Orbán conceded defeat in the April 2026 election, as Péter Magyar’s Tisza Party secured a commanding parliamentary majority and brought a decisive shift in Hungarian politics. The result was emphatic: Orbán’s way, long dominant, was rejected at the ballot box.
Interpretations followed swiftly – and predictably. Across much of Europe, the result was hailed as a ‘return to Europe’, a correction of an illiberal deviation. Among conservatives, especially beyond Hungary, the tone was closer to lament. Yet neither reaction suffices. Orbán’s legacy resists easy categorisation: it requires a more careful judgement.
