The Hungarian nationalist leader attributed his re-election victory to his unique "Christian democratic, conservative, patriotic" values.
Despite expectations of a tight race, Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban and his right-wing Fidesz party won a re-election over the opposition, the United for Hungary alliance on Sunday. The 58 year old boasted that their victory was due to the popularity of his "brand of Christian democratic, conservative, patriotic politics."
The Christian Post reported that more than 98% of votes had been counted, as per Hungary's National Election Office. Orban's Fidesz party earned 53.29% of the vote and 135 seats in the parliamentary, which was enough to secure a supermajority in the 199-seat Parliament. The second-highest share of votes went to United for Hungary, with 34.89% of the vote and 56 seats. The remaining seven seats in the Parliament were taken by the Our Country party, which earned 6.15% of the vote. Finally, the last remaining seat went to a minor political party called the National Self-Government of Hungarian Germans.
"The whole world has seen tonight in Budapest that our brand of Christian democratic, conservative, patriotic politics has won," Orban proclaimed after his victory. He also had a few words for his opponents and the influence of liberal Hungarian-born billionaire George Soros, as well as other international forces.
"We had to fight the biggest, overwhelming force: the left at home, the international left, the Brussels bureaucrats, the Soros empire with all its money, the international mainstream media and in the end, the Ukrainian president," Orbos declared.
CNBC reported that Orban had long boasted of his close relations with President Vladimir Putin of Russia, which became a major challenge during his campaign. About 85% of gas and 64% of oil supplies in Hungary are sourced from Russia. The country also because the first European Union nation to purchase Russian-made COVID vaccines despite it not being approved by European regulators.
But Orban has also condemned Russia's unprovoked attack on Ukraine and expressed its loyalty to the EU. Orban's administration, as well as other EU states, approved severe sanctions on Russian oligarchs and the Russian economy and has also accommodated almost 400,000 Ukrainian refugees. Hungary is also a member of NATO.
During Sunday's election, Hungarian voters expressed concerns over several referendums involving LGBT issues. Ballot measures over allowing "sexual orientation sessions for minor children in public education without parental consent," "the promotion of gender reassignment surgery for minors," "the unrestricted introduction of sexual media content to minors," and "the display of gender-sensitive media content to minors" were widely rejected. More than 90% of Hungarians voted against every policy proposal.
The promotion of gender reassignment survery for minors received the highest rate of opposition at 95.89%, followed by the exposure of minor children to sexually explicit material with 95.32%. Meanwhile, the display of gender-sensitive materials to children earned 95.17%, while the counseling of children about thier sexual orientation and gender identity without parental consent earned a 92.34% opposition rate.
Sunday's elections hands a fourth consecutive term to the Hungarian Prime Minister, who is set to change the constitution and implement his conservative nationalist ideology across civil society and business, the Financial Times reported.
