Former Hungarian Prime Minister Orban re-elected as Fidesz leader despite general election defeat

In Hungary, the main opposition party Fidesz held a congress to elect its new party leader. Former Hungarian Prime Minister and current party leader Viktor Orban ran as the sole candidate in the election.

Speaking at the congress before the vote, Orban stated that he took full responsibility for his party's defeat in the general elections held in April, declaring, "I am not giving up. Never, never, never, never, and never will I give up."

Orban said that while Fidesz had been a "magnificent ruling party" for 16 years, it must now transform into a functional opposition party and undergo a process of change to be ready to return to power.

The Hungarian state news agency MTI reported that 729 out of 737 delegates who voted in the election cast their ballots in favor of Orban. Thus, Orban was elected as chairman for another year, despite his party losing power to the center-right Tisza Party in the elections held on April 12.

Meanwhile, public opinion polls show that support for the Fidesz party among the Hungarian public has declined since the elections. According to a poll conducted by the Publicus Institute in May, the Tisza Party's vote share rose from 53 percent in the elections to 55 percent, while support for Fidesz fell from 39 percent to 17 percent.

In the elections held in April, the Tisza Party, led by current Prime Minister Peter Magyar, secured a two-thirds majority in parliament, gaining the political power to reverse the constitutional changes made during the Orban era.