It’s the home stretch for Péter Magyar. This Sunday, April 12, Hungarians are called to the polls on the occasion legislative electionswhich will put an end to the campaign led by the leader of the opposition party Tisza, who largely took advantage of his role as MEP to boost his campaign.
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Péter Magyar worked so hard to avoid being called a “Brussels puppet” by his rival, Prime Minister Viktor Orbán, that he has practically not been seen in Brussels in recent weeks. Since his election in 2024, he has even rarely attended commission sessions, according to some colleagues.
“It seems that its participation in plenary votes is rather low, around 21% since the start of the mandate”said Doru Frantescu, an analyst at the EU Matrix, a think tank that provides information and data on EU institutions. “This means that he has focused on internal politics not only recently, but even before.”
Péter Magyar’s last appearance took place in Strasbourg in January, when he voted in favor of referring the EU-Mercosur trade agreement to the Court of Justice.
A helping hand from Europe?
This reflects a clear mission: from the start, Péter Magyar prioritized his fight against Viktor Orbán in order to put an end to sixteen years of unchallenged reign. To this end, the European Parliament served as a springboard to launch his campaign, granting him immunity while allowing him to build alliances before the crucial vote.
This dynamic was already observed during the European elections of June 2024, when the leader of the opposition party obtained 30% of the votes with a party founded a few months earlier. Soon after, the European People’s Party welcomed Tisza’s seven MEPs, integrating them into the continent’s largest political bloc.
With polls placing him as the favorite for the next legislative elections, Péter Magyar has intensified his campaign in recent months, forcing him to focus on rallies and events in Hungary rather than in Brussels.
However, he is far from being the only one: many European MPs have always used Parliament to advance their national campaigns. And in his case, a large majority of MEPs support him, seeing in Péter Magyar the best alternative to Viktor Orbán, who has become the enemy of Brussels, blocking key EU files with his right of veto.
In this context, the European Parliament helped the leader of Tisza to raise his political profile both at home and abroad.
The only clash between Viktor Orban and Péter Magyar took place during the plenary session in Strasbourg, during the Hungarian presidency of the Council of the EU, in October 2024. After the Prime Minister’s usual speech to European deputies, his opponent took the floor to accuse him of having made Hungary the poorest and most corrupt member state of the EU.
Péter Magyar then approached Viktor Orbán and the two men shook hands. The photo, which quickly went viral, shows Péter Magyar favorably, unlike Viktor Orbán.
A noted absence
However, the role of an MEP is supposed to balance European and national responsibilities. But this balance has shifted in recent years, with many MEPs spending more time in Brussels and taking a more active role in shaping EU policies. A role that would be theirs, according to the treaties, which define a European deputy as playing a “key role in shaping EU rules” car “They amend and vote on legislative proposals presented by the European Commission and negotiate the final text with the Council representing EU countries”.
A lawyer by profession, Péter Magyar was appointed member of two influential commissions: that of constitutional affairs (AFCO) and that of agriculture and rural development (AGRI). However, he did not participate in any report written by these commissions.
He signed only one resolution (on women’s rights in Iraq, editor’s note) and submitted only one written question to the Commission concerning land confiscation practices linked to the historic Beneč decrees in Slovakia, which affect Hungarian minorities.
“I don’t have much to say, because I’ve never seen it”declared to Euronews a MEP who sits in a committee with Péter Magyar. Another confirmed that his work at committee level was greatly missed, due to his campaign commitments in Hungary.
Contacted by Euronews, many Tisza members declined to comment on his work in Parliament due to the political sensitivity surrounding the Hungarian elections. Others, however, argue that Péter Magyar’s opposition to Viktor Orbán places him in an unprecedented position compared to other MEPs.
“This is not a routine campaign: this is a system-defining election where Hungary’s very membership in the EU is at stake, and this requires Péter Magyar’s full attention.”a Parliament official close to the Tisza party told Euronews, affirming that the physical absence from Brussels did not mean disengagement. “He remains fully involved in all key decisions. When important choices arise, particularly on voting positions, he often joins discussions directly,” he assured.
Within the EPP, the absence of Magyar is noted but generally accepted. “He never participates in group meetings”an EPP official told Euronews, adding that it is above all Zoltán Tarr, the head of Tisza’s delegation to Parliament, who represents the party in all the group’s political discussions in Brussels or Strasbourg.
EPP officials acknowledge that the group’s leadership tolerated Péter Magyar’s limited involvement in the group’s activities, considering supporting the electoral success of an EPP party in Hungary as a more important priority.
Without his parliamentary immunity, “he would have had problems getting there”assures another official. The Hungarian authorities have also requested the lifting of his immunity in three different legal cases, but Parliament rejected these requests by a large majority.
Ukraine as a subject of tension
While Tisza is considered more pro-European than Viktor Orbán’s Fidesz, Péter Magyar has been careful to avoid any political stance in Brussels that might be unpopular in his country.
The Prime Minister is already accusing him of representing the interests of the EU and Ukraine before those of Hungary, which the main person concerned regrets. For Tisza, Ukraine’s potential membership in the EU is a particularly sensitive issue: although it is supported by most of the European Parliament, including the EPP, many voters remain skeptical.
A similar tension exists regarding the EU and EPP’s commitment to increasing support for Ukraine. In February 2026, Tisza MEPs voted against the loan of 90 billion euros proposed by the EU to Ukraine, thus aligning with Viktor Orbán’s decision to veto it.
“Tisza’s room for maneuver is limited. Having a position diametrically opposed to that of Fidesz would not be popular with a large part of the electorate.”declared Doru Frantescu. “They must find a balance between the position of the EPP and that of current public opinion in their country.”
On issues such as immigration and the environment, Tisza acts as a bridge, broadly aligning with his European political family while remaining close to Fidesz’s position. “The EU and Hungary need strong protection of their external borders and we should fight together against illegal immigration. I do not agree with the redistribution of asylum seekers across Europe”declared Péter Magyar during an interview with Euronews in October 2024, a few months after his election as an MEP.
Efforts to appeal to the Hungarian electorate have sometimes created friction between Tisza and other parties within the EPP group.
Recently, Tisza challenged the PPE group’s position three times, leading to internal sanctions. Its deputies voted against l’accord commercial UE-Mercosur, citing the need to defend the interests of Hungarian farmers, a move that led to Tisza lawmakers being banned from speaking in plenary sessions for six months.
Another sensitive issue is Tisza’s effort to distance himself from EPP President Manfred Weber and Commission President Ursula von der Leyen, both of whom are portrayed negatively by the Hungarian government and frequently shown alongside Péter Magyar on Fidesz campaign posters.
This positioning is reflected in her parliamentary behavior: Tisza MPs did not support Ursula von der Leyen in the last vote of confidence in January, a decision widely seen as intentional.
“We are grateful to Brussels for confirming that Tisza politicians have no owners”Péter Magyar wrote on Facebook, indicating that his commitment to the principles of the EPP and the EU has always been secondary to national opinion.
