In the capital, where two-thirds of constituencies voted in favor of the opposition in the last elections of 2018, government advertisements are often falsified. Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban, right, and Russian President Vladimir Putin shake hands after a press conference following talks in Budapest on October 30, 2019. Orban hopes to win his fourth consecutive term in a close election campaign. (Bernadett Szabo / Reuters)
In many, the letter “Z” is written. In Russia, it has become a symbol of support for the country’s military offensive in Ukraine. In Hungary, it targets Orban, who is accused of not doing enough to denounce Russia and President Vladimir Putin. “Orban is the most pro-Putin prime minister in the entire European Union,” said Peter Creco, a political scientist and executive director of Political Capital, a Budapest-based think tank. “I think the rest of the world came out stronger from this conflict. Hungary is clearly an extreme position.” An election poster for Kovács Balázs Norbert, a member of Orbán’s political party, has been distorted with an “Z” in this photo taken on March 28, 2022, in Budapest. (Briar Stewart / CBC)

Close ties with Putin

Orban hopes to win his fourth consecutive term as prime minister in a close election on Sunday. His party had a small lead (41 percent of the electorate) over a six-party opposition (39 percent of the electorate) in a think tank IDEA Institute poll conducted in the last week of March. He has cultivated close ties with Putin over the past 12 years in power. While condemning the Russian invasion, he did not personally criticize Putin and put him in a difficult position with EU leaders. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky called on Hungary to leave during a speech at a virtual meeting on March 24, saying that Orban had to “decide for himself who you will be with.” CLOCKS Hungary opens its borders to Ukrainian refugees:

Hungary welcomes Ukrainian refugees in stark contrast to the past

For weeks, Hungary has been hosting Ukrainian refugees – a significant difference from its response in 2015 when officials closed the border with Serbia to keep migrants out. 2:30
Orban said Hungary would not send weapons to Ukraine or allow missions from other countries to pass through its territory. While analysts say his stance has further isolated him from Western leaders, including some of the country’s most powerful allies such as Poland and the Czech Republic, the war has allowed him to create a campaign message for his domestic audience. He has described himself as the only choice for peace and security, and says that what Hungary needs now is neutrality. During a rally in Budapest on March 15, he told a crowd of Fidesz supporters that Hungarians should stay out of the war and could not be trapped between the “Ukrainian anvil and the Russian sledgehammer”.

Hungary is dependent on Russian gas and oil

Orban, a hardline nationalist, visited Moscow just three weeks before Russian troops entered Ukraine. In a press conference afterwards, he spoke about the need for cooperation and credible action. According to Hungarian officials quoting the Hungary Today news portal, the country supplies 85 percent of its gas and more than 60 percent of its oil from Russia. Putin, left, listens to Orbán, right, during their meeting in the Kremlin in Moscow on February 1, 2022. (Mikhail Klimentyev / Sputnik / Kremlin Pool Photo / The Associated Press)
This dependence is the reason why Orban said he would not support sanctions on Russia’s energy sector, although Hungary has supported other rounds of sanctions already approved by the EU. “We are not going to wear a sweater, to turn up the heat a bit, as some in the West think,” Orban said on Friday in an interview with Hungarian national radio station Kossuth. “This is a question of whether the economy works or not.”

In “Stalin City”, people are divided

Outside the capital, most constituencies voted for Fidesz in 2018, but not the industrial city of Dunaújváros, a community built in the 1950s around a steel plant that still operates. A local woman buys products at a market in Dunaújváros, Hungary, on March 31, 2022. (Lily Martin / CBC)
It was once called the city of Stalin. While the name was later changed, Soviet apartment buildings are still lined the streets. The CBC visited the city market, where the stalls were full of produce, flowers and sausages, and people were divided over the Hungarian government and its allegiance to Russia. “Europe will freeze to death if it does not get Russian gas,” said Laszlo, who will only give his first name. He said he believed Orban’s relationship with Putin was good and that the Russian president had an excuse to go to Ukraine. Laszlo, a supporter of Fidesz, photographed at a market in Dunaújváros on March 31, 2022, says he believes Putin was justified in sending troops to Ukraine. (Lily Martin / CBC)
In another corridor, fruit seller Tünde Tamás said she felt desperate about the direction her country was heading. “If this regime remains, our country is over,” said the 45-year-old mother of four. “I want to be part of the West,” he said. “I do not want to belong to the East.” Fruit seller Tamás Tünde, who appears at a market in Dunaújváros on March 31, 2022, says she feels desperate. (Lily Martin / CBC)

Political transformation

Long before Orban became prime minister, he was part of a young group of Democrats trying to start a political transformation throughout Hungary. During the days of communism in 1989, he made a passionate speech calling for free elections and the withdrawal of Soviet troops.
The Fidesz party was founded by Orbán and other activists who wanted Hungary to be shaped by democratic ideals, but today has embraced the idea of ​​a “free democracy”. CLOCKS A summary of events in week 6 of the Russian invasion of Ukraine:

What happened in the 6th week of the Russian attack on Ukraine: Peace talks, evacuation of Mariupol

Russia’s promise to reduce its military activity near Kyiv was met with skepticism, and a humanitarian convoy attempted to evacuate Mariupol. The following is a summary of events in Ukraine and how world leaders reacted from March 26 to April 1. 8:21
According Freedom House, A US-based think tank, Hungary is the first and only EU country to be listed as “partly free”. “I think Orban wants a system like Russia,” said Gergely Kálló, an opposition politician seeking re-election to the Dunaújváros. “We see that Putin’s policy is that there is no free media, all power is in one hand. “I think Orban wants the same thing.”

Tighter grip on the inside

Over the past decade, Orban’s government has tightened control over the country’s media, exerting more influence in both public and private media. Dozens of newspapers, radio and television stations have been bought by Orbán supporters and hundreds of local publications have been collected. According to government officials, state ownership of local media has risen to 55 percent in recent years. One of the most important independent news magazines, HVG, says the government is also channeling advertising revenue to pro-government stores, which is burdening other publications. A few years ago, the magazine was banned from airing headlines with its satirical covers, mocking government officials, and often Orban’s relationship with Putin. A front page of HVG, a major independent news magazine, depicts Orban shining Putin’s shoes in this photo taken on April 1, 2022. (Lily Martin / CBC)
“Our front-page publication was so important to us – even if you do not buy our paper, you can see our anti-government statement,” said Mercédesz Gyükeri, who heads the publication’s finance column. He says that last month, much of the campaign has shifted from an economic debate to which party can ensure peace and stability.

An inclination towards Russia

Péter Márki-Zay leads a coalition of six different opposition parties. He is trying to win over voters by citing Orban’s close ties to Putin and his inclination toward Russia. But Orbán is ahead of the polls and has been touted as the only candidate to prevent the country from dragging itself into the Ukrainian conflict. A sign for the opposition that reads “Hungarian Putin or Europe? The vote on 3 April takes place outside the Dunaújváro. (Lily Martin / CBC)
This week, Hungarian Foreign Minister Peter Szijjarto accused Ukraine of trying to influence the election by collaborating with the country’s opposition parties. Ukraine has denied the allegations, but Creco, of the think tank Political Capital, says the allegations are being repeated in the pro-government media in Hungary. He says countries across the West are worried about Russian and Chinese interference in the elections, but Hungary is worried about Ukrainian and US interference. “I think it says a lot about how far Hungary has moved away from the Western mainstream.”