Looking at independent poll results or the odds on Polymarket, it is hard not to notice that an opposition victory is no longer a wishful scenario,but the baseline. In just over a week, the government could be formed by a party that did not exist in the political mainstream two years ago – just like its leader, Peter Magyar.
Peter Magyar: from Fidesz member to the face of Tisza
What makes the 45-year-old’s story particularly interesting is that he has been associated with the Fidesz party for half his life,becoming involved in its local structures whilst still a student, ata time when the party was in opposition to the MSZP(Hungarian Socialist Party)government. In 2010, when Fidesz regained power, he became an official at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs. He later served at the Permanent Representation of Hungary to the EU, the Prime Minister’s Office and the legal departments of major state owned enterprises.
However, he never advanced as far within the party hierarchy as his ex-wife, Judit Varga, who became Minister of Justice in 2019. Peter was not regarded a“team player” by high-ranking politicians; he repeatedly criticised the government’s actions in internal disputes, and the breakdown of his relationship with Judit only distanced him further from Fidesz’s inner circle.
The turning point was the scandal surrounding the presidential pardon of Endre Konyi, who had been convicted of covering up child abuse offences. The media’s disclosure of the details of the case in February 2024 remains to this day one of Fidesz’s greatest hours of crisis, leading to the dismissal of President Kaitlin Novak and the Minister of Justice, Magyar’s then ex-wife,Judit Varga.
Magyar saw the crisis as a once in-a-lifetime opportunity, and shortly afterwards released Judit's voice recording, which related to the most high-profile corruption scandal of recent years (the Schadl-Völner affair).He also gave an interview to Partizan at the time, which generated over a million views within a few days (currently 2.5million).
The momentum surrounding Magyar grew at an alarmingly rapid pace, enabling TISZA, which he had joined shortly before, to secure nearly 30% of the vote in the European Parliament elections. Since then, the party’s poll rating shave been rising almost continuously, making it the unexpected favourite in the parliamentary elections scheduled for 12 April.
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