Good news arrived tonight from Hungary:Viktor Orbán has lost the elections. He has lost them clearly, because the opposition leader has won them with a resounding two-thirds absolute majority with the highest turnout in Hungary's recent democratic history; never before had so many people gone to vote since 1989 when the communist regime fell, meaning there was a desire to vote and a desire for change.The profile of the winner, Péter Magyar, is apparently contradictory: he worked for Orbán's government, but has been increasingly distancing himself until stating tonight that "the people of Hungary have said yes to Europe". And in Brussels there is euphoria, because although Hungary is a relatively small country (9 and a half million inhabitants), Orbán's Hungary was a kind of black sheep in the European Union for a double and powerful reason: it was the candidate of Putin and Trump. It has always opposed European sanctions on Russia, and as for Trump, Orbán was one of the European references for the American president, to the point that last week Vice President Vance went to Hungary to support Orbán in an electoral rally. That Trump's candidates lose in Europe, that going hand in hand with Trump detracts rather than adds, is a sign that people do not want wars like those in Iran that are making us more expensive and complicating our lives, as we explain on this page: the rising cost of fertilizers threatens the cost of food, and it turns out that the Persian Gulf countries are among the main producers.the rising cost of fertilizers threatens the cost of food, and it turns out that the Persian Gulf countries are among the main producers.By the way, the first round of peace talks with Iran ended in disagreement (as expected) and tonight Trump said he will block the Strait of Hormuz (which will prevent Iran from charging tolls to pass through it), which in essence is an acknowledgment that he cannot open it. And since he does everything in bulk, this morning he attacked Pope Leo XIV in one of those on-the-fly responses, saying that the Pope is

In the end, tonight, Donald Trump has not ended with “an entire civilization”, because Iran and the United States have given themselves another fifteen days. Trump has found a temporary way out of this war without a clear objective and Iran has resisted and put its conditions on the table. Everyone has lost, in fact, we have all lost, but Trump and the ayatollahs will say they have won. The one who continues to go their own way is Israel, which has already said it does not feel concerned by this two-week ceasefire and will continue to attack southern Lebanon. In any case, this morning we have reasons to breathe a little relieved. And if you want to add a point of reflection, do not miss this article by philosophy professor Ferran Sáez Mateu, titled “Trump: how did we get here?”, in which he explains why people vote for him. “Many voters make a decision based on who they believe they are or what subjective threats they perceive”. Closer, three interesting posts, today. The first: the Spanish Minister of Culture, Ernest Urtasun, has not dared to temporarily move Picasso's Guernica to the Basque Country, as the government of Vitoria had requested.Urtasun clings to the technicians' report which says that with the transfer, the painting could be damaged. The most progressive government in history will not take the symbolic step of exhibiting Guernica in the Basque Country. The reason interests us quite a bit: the work could be damaged. Like the frescoes of Sixena, right?Two: the Spanish government wants to change the Constitution to protect the right to abortion. They did it in France, because the extreme right, when it governs, rolls it back, and because in Spain, most abortions are not performed in public healthcare (in Catalonia, yes), but in private ones. The Spanish government will not achieve it, because to change the Constitution, a majority of ⅗ parts is needed, meaning the PP's votes are required, and the PP will not give them the votes. Why is the PSOE doing it? With the real argument of protecting rights, it forces the PP to say no and alienate itself from the female vote and align itself with VOX, with whom, moreover, they are agreeing on regional governments in Extremadura, Aragon, and Castile and León. And the elections in Andalusia are coming.And the third, and very symbolic: yesterday, the Spanish Episcopal Conference presented some details of the visit of Pope Leo XIV, in just two months. The theme of the trip will be “Lift your eyes”, which is exactly what Leo XIV himself will do in Barcelona when he goes out onto Sardenya street to bless from below the cross that has recently culminated the Sagrada Familia.Without the Sagrada Família, the Pope would not have moved from Rome, but if he came, he had to pass through Madrid (no need to explain why) and take the opportunity to make a trip that his predecessor Pope Francis would have liked to make, which is to go to the Canary Islands, a point of arrival for which thousands of Africans risk their lives trying to enter the European Union. No sooner said than done, here is the logo, of a kitsch and outdated design as has not been seen for a long time, in which the Sagrada Família appears in the middle, the Puerta de Alcalá on the left and the sea (which represents the Canary Islands, which surrounds it). And now for the best part. When presenting the trip, the Episcopal Conference says that, in this act of looking up, one finds “the recognition of God as a source of unity (Madrid), beauty (Barcelona), and charity (the Canary Islands)”.Given that you are chosen for some concept, it is fine that Barcelona is associated with beauty, but don't tell me it's not sensational that the recognition of God as a source of unity is Madrid. Madrid, destination unit in the spiritual, too. It is clear that this trip will not escape the same national tension that was already experienced in 1982 with the visit of John Paul II and in 2010 with that of Benedict XVI.Good morning.

In the window of the Antico Forno in Legna, at the gates of Castel Gandolfo, Daniela proudly displays a letter sent by the Vatican Secretariat of State and signed by the Pope Francis in which the Argentine pontiff thanks them for sending some artisan pastries. "His Holiness thanks you for the gift and the feelings of filial veneration that this kind gesture has suggested […] and gladly sends you his blessing," reads the letter, dated 2022. "Pope Francis was a fan of our pastries. Every Sunday, someone would pass by and take them to Rome."

The Catholic Church woke up this Friday with a new leader. The American Robert Francis Prevost, who also has Peruvian nationality and Spanish ancestry, had become the 267th pontiff in history on Thursday, in the be elected by a two-thirds majority by the 133 "closed" cardinals on the second day of the conclave. Before them all, gathered again in the majestic Sistine Chapel, the new Pope Leo XIV celebrated the first Mass of his pontificate, in which he called for the Church's influence to be restored and denounced the decline of faith in favor of "technology, money, success, power, or pleasure."