Independent journalists have faced an uphill battle in Hungary as Orbán took control of 80 percent of media in the country. Despite that, independent reporters became a decisive factor in the final outcome. They uncovered how the Orbán government worked to undermine the opposition via the country’s secret services, and obtained details of phone calls between Budapest and the Kremlin, discussing sensitive EU matters.
Doctors will also be a winner, as Magyar has promised to increase public investment by €1 billion a year. That pledge comes after a decade of underspending in the health sector that left long waiting lists, dilapidated hospitals, lack of equipment and, ultimately, caused a brain drain, President of the Hungarian Medical Chamber Péter Almos told POLITICO.
Orbán’s government has in the past unleashed billboard campaigns blaming doctors for the system’s deficiencies.
The losers
Donald Trump and JD Vance
U.S. Vice President JD Vance visited Orbán in Budapest on April 7 to support his reelection bid, boasting that he would win and accusing the EU of interfering in the vote. U.S. President Donald Trump gave Orbán five public endorsements in the last six months and vowed Washington would provide Hungary with economic support.
“We have to get Orbán reelected as prime minister of Hungary, don’t we?” Vance told Fidesz supporters to rapturous applause during a rally at a football stadium. But the words of support were in vain, dealing a blow to the White House, which has now lost its key ally in Europe as transatlantic relations sour.