Meloni, Netanyahu or Abascal: the global far right is calling for a vote for Orbán

BarcelonaThe best—or worst—of every corner of the global far right has joined forces this week to support one of its leading figures, now in decline, Viktor Orbán, the longest-serving leader in the European Union. Set to music as repetitive as it is bland, the Hungarian prime minister, in office since 2010, posted a video on his social media account featuring his Italian counterpart, Giorgia Meloni; Alice Weidel of Alternative for Germany; and the Spanish politician Santiago Abascal, among others, encouraging Hungarians to vote for him in the general election, which will take place on April 12. Also participating is the Argentinian Javier Milei, who at the end calls for the inevitable "Long live freedom, damn it!Matteo Salvini; France's Marine Le Pen; and Austrian leader Herbert Kickl, head of the Freedom Party of Austria (FPÖ). It is surprising in this context that Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has joined in, stating that "security cannot be taken for granted, it must be won." With his praise, Netanyahu overlooks Israel's official boycott of two of the European far-right parties featured in the video—the German AfD and the Austrian FPÖ—because of their antisemitic roots. Also included are Czech Prime Minister André and former Polish Prime Minister Mateusz Morawiecki.

Although he does not appear in the video, on January 10, US President Donald Trump sent a letter to the Hungarian Prime Minister wishing him "the best of luck" in the elections and expressing his desire to visit the country where, he highlighted "the golden age" of the relations between Budapest and Washington.

The April elections come at a time of weakness for Orbán. Fidesz, his party, is trailing by 10 to 12 points in the polls. But the bad news is that the alternative doesn't look much better. Tisza Respect and Freedom (Respect and Freedom), a political party created in 2024 and led by Péter Magyar, has become the main challenge to the government.

The movement defines itself neither as a left-wing party nor as social democratic, but as a cross-party platform focused on fighting corruption, restoring the rule of law, and normalizing relations with the European Union. This is one of the key features that distinguishes it from Orbán, who has been a real headache for Brussels and its policies supporting Ukraine. Because Orbán is, in practice, Vladimir Putin's Trojan horse within the Union.

Magyar's discourse, at 45 years old, avoids the classic left-right axis and emphasizes institutional decay, economic stagnation, and the malfunctioning of public services. In fact, this lawyer is a former high-ranking official in Fidesz who broke with the ruling party, denouncing patronage practices and abuses of power. His profile, very moderately right-wing but not illiberal, allows him, in principle, to criticize the system from within and attract voters disillusioned with Orbán. His campaign focuses on internal reforms and unlocking frozen European funds, avoiding traditional ideological frameworks and presenting himself as an alternative for political regeneration.