PM Orbán at Tusványos: We would secure landslide victory in a snap election

According to internal polls, the ruling parties would win a landslide victory and secure an overwhelming majority if parliamentary elections were held this Sunday. They would win mandates in 80 out of Hungary’s 106 single-member constituencies, Prime Minister Viktor Orbán said in his speech on the final day of the 34th Bálványos Summer Free University and Student Camp (Tusványos) on Saturday morning.

He added that he would not be satisfied with that result, as their candidates had won in 87 districts in 2022. “Why should we settle for less in 2026? We won’t settle for less,” he said in the speech.

Orbán stated that this was intended as a closing speech for the current cycle, but he plans to return a year from now with an opening speech for the next one. He also emphasised the impact of elections on the lives of ethnic Hungarians living beyond Hungary’s borders, saying there is always a choice between two destinies.

He remarked that the creed of Hungary’s opposition, “directed from Brussels,” was already expressed when someone referred to Oradea (Nagyvárad) as “Romanian land” (Oradea used to be part of the Kingdom of Hungary, but it was attached to Romania after WWI – ed.).

“We represent the opposite of that. We say that while a state has borders, a nation does not. That’s why you can always count on a national government. We stand up for Hungarians, we will fight for you too, and I ask you to stand up for your own future,” Orbán said.

Orbán: There’s a chance for cooperation with Romania’s new prime minister

There is a chance for cooperation if Romania can overcome the serious economic difficulties it currently faces, Orbán said, referring to his recent meeting with his Romanian counterpart, Ilie Bolojan.

The Hungarian prime minister noted that Bolojan is his 24th Romanian counterpart, and commented that the stability of the Romanian political system stems more from its presidents than its prime ministers.

Orbán emphasised that the Romanian PM is a “heavyweight politician” and a native of Oradea (Nagyvárad), meaning “he operates within the same code system and cultural pattern as we do.” At the same time, Bolojan is a Romanian patriot who will fight for his country’s national interests, while also aspiring to achieve joint Romanian-Hungarian successes—something he is interested in and willing to work toward.

Orbán: Thanks to Trump’s victory, ‘we have managed to avoid a world war’

Thanks to Donald Trump’s victory, “we have managed to avoid a world war for now”, Orbán said.

He said a debate in Hungary was taking place regarding how the US president had benefitted Hungary, adding that “we have managed to avoid a world war for now, there is no longer political discrimination against Hungary, economic sanctions against the Paks power plant have been removed … and American investments in Hungary are underway.”

He referred to four “outstanding” US research and development investments made recently, “and three more are expected in September”.

Orbán: Tisza, DK won’t form govt because ‘we want pro-peace, national’ govt in Hungary

Orbán said that voters would not allow the opposition Tisza and DK parties to take power in Hungary and the European Union would therefore fail to instal a “pro-Ukrainian and pro-Brussels” government. “We want Hungary to have a pro-peace and national government,” he declared.

Orbán said the EU had decided to “go to war” and “even if the United States withdraws”, the bloc would continue supporting Ukraine. “Hungary has chosen not to go to war,” the prime minister declared.

He insisted the EU wanted a “pro-Ukrainian and pro-Brussels” government in Hungary that would join it in waging war. He added that “we will not allow either Tisza or DK to form a government, because we want Hungary to have a pro-peace and national government.”

He said Hungary had received half of its EU funding, or 12 billion euros, “and the other half will arrive as no new seven-year European budget will be approved until Hungary receives its missing money”, noting EU budget approval requires unanimity.

Orbán vowed that Hungary would receive its remaining EU funding and would “not make any concessions” regarding sovereignty.

He said that whereas the opposition Tisza and DK parties would no doubt succeed in securing the outstanding EU funds, this would be at the price of supporting Ukraine and its bid to become an EU member, implementing the migration pact, repealing the child protection law, repealing taxes on multinationals and abolishing the reduction in utility bills.

All this would be “in exchange for our sovereignty”, he said. “I propose we bring [the EU money] home instead,” the prime minister added.

Orbán: ‘Hungary will be great and wealthy’

The core of Hungary’s national strategy is that the country will be “great and wealthy”, Orbán said. He said the basic premise of Hungary’s “grand strategy” was that “when Hungary’s defeat was cemented in 1920, the country’s enemies decided that Hungary will be small and poor.”

“We are in politics … to change this destiny, which means Hungary will be great and wealthy; this is the core of the Hungarian national strategy,” the prime minister said.

Orbán said Hungary’s grand strategy also had to answer the question of “where people will come from”. “We’re not preparing to import any people,” he said, emphasising that Hungary needed to be a “family-friendly nation”.

Hungary, he said had the most generous family support scheme in the European Union. He noted that the new Home Start subsidies credit scheme was giving young people a chance to be a part of the nation, not just culturally but also as homeowners, which he said would ultimately strengthen families, young people and the nation overall.

Orbán: ‘Something clearly amiss in Hungarian showbusiness’

Something is “clearly amiss in Hungarian showbusiness”, Orbán said, referring to the government’s decision to ban Irish band Kneecap from Hungary over their recurring anti-Semitic hate speech.

Speaking about the “anti-Semitic rock band that praises terrorism”, Orbán said it was important that Hungary was “an island of freedom and peace in a world that has turned upside-down”, and that no one could be assaulted either physically or verbally for their heritage or faith. (Note: Kneecap, the musical group Orbán was referring to, is not “anti-Semitic” but stands up for the Palestinian people regularly. It is important not to confuse the two.)

He said the organisers of Budapest’s Sziget Festival “should’ve been smart enough” not to invite the group and spare Hungary from this situation in the first place.

Referring to other musicians who have disparaged the government and their supporters in recent weeks, Orbán said: “Something is clearly amiss in Hungarian showbusiness just before the election.” He said he understood that “everyone has to make money, but money can’t be that important.”

Orbán: Ruling parties setting up ‘digital civic circles’

Orbán announced that the ruling parties are setting up so-called digital civic circles as “there is a need for a digital civic force” which counters the “culture of destruction” online. Orbán said the website containing all relevant information would soon be launched.

He said the digital civic circles would be significant in terms of the 2026 election but went “far beyond that”. “We, the right-wing, bourgeois, Christian conservative, national community in Hungary, must do something about the virtual space. Today it is hostile territory, and this is not good,” he said.

In the past 15 years, he added, webcams had replaced coffee shops and “we have moved conversations to chatrooms”. “And if something does not start from the internet, nothing comes of it”, he added. While this was true the world over, “rudeness, insults, trolling and digital violence” were especially Hungarian, he said.

Anyone who takes a “non-leftist, non-progressive, non-liberal” stance is “attacked, mocked, and their dignity violated”, Orbán said, adding that “something must be done about this”. The prime minister referred to the establishment of the Hungarian ruling alliance’s “Fight Club” set up to combat the “digital aggression” of the Tisza Party.

But there were those who were “fed up with” conflict, he said, “which is why we need … a space for those who do not want to take part in direct political battles, but want to participate in nation-building instead.”

Orbán: Chance of world war constantly rising

The chance of a world war is “constantly rising”, Orbán said, adding that Hungary had to be prepared to stay out of the conflict. He said the past world wars had been preceded by signs such as intensifying rivalries between global powers, the growing number of armed conflicts in the world and a growing arms race.

“Hungary needs … strategic calm,” the prime minister said. “Ukraine must not be admitted to the European Union — which would also mean bringing in war — even if the whole of Brussels is turned upside down.”

Orbán said the limits to Hungary’s diplomatic and power influence were “obvious”, adding that because of this it had to focus on regional peace. “We must build peace alliances with whomever we can,” he said.

Hungary, he said, had to be prepared to stay out of war, for which it needed to foster good relations with all global power centres. He said Hungary needed all of the global powers to have an interest in the country’s success. “In other words, no one should have an interest in destroying and weakening Hungary.”

The requirement for staying out of a war, Orbán said, was for Hungary to be strong enough to protect itself. “There’s more work to be done in this respect, although our defence spending has reached 1,750 billion forints (EUR 4.4bn).”

Orbán said a full national consensus was needed for Hungary not to be locked into any bloc. “We’re part of the Western alliance, but we must also have a presence in the Eastern economy as well,” he added.

Orbán: ‘We must fight to keep our sovereignty’

Hungary today “is still a sovereign country”, Orbán said. “But we must fight for it every day,” he said. “A sovereign Hungary means living how we want, the Hungarian way, and not how someone else tells us to,” he said, adding that this meant also choosing to live “without migrants, war and gender”.

Asked what he would do if he happened to head the European Commission, Orbán said the balance of power between member states and the EU “powers” must be restored and powers taken away from member states must be given back.

Raising the possibility of a stratified bloc, he said every nation should have the right to decide “which part of the European structure it wants to join”. He said the bloc should be constructed in such a way that “every nation would feel comfortable, well and happy in the same way”.

Orbán: Future ‘belongs to central Europe’ because it is protected from migration

Orbán said the “future belongs to central Europe” as the region was protected from migration. He said Western European countries were now “mixed societies with a growing Muslim population” and with a “Muslim majority in big cities within the foreseeable future”. “A population exchange will take place,” he said.

Europe would remain a migration destination in the years to come, he said, adding that ten years from now the prime minister’s chief task would be to “protect the country’s western borders from migration”.

He said in Western Europe, Christianity and a nationally minded life had never been linked, and he contrasted this with Hungary, where the constitution “recognises the role of Christianity in preserving the nation”.

Orbán said young people were now taught that “if they are Hungarians, they have a task … to preserve what we have, to acquire what we need … and to say ‘no’ to what we do not need.”

Read more news on Romanian-Hungarian relations on Daily News Hungary!

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• Orbán’s controversial speech from Tusványos 2022: Orbán: “Hungarians are not a mixed race and do not want to become one”