A liberal-conservative analysis of Viktor Orbán's term in office in Hungary

This Sunday, April 12, Hungary is holding parliamentary elections after 16 years of rule by right-wing leader Viktor Orbán.

Viktor Orbán lies about Russian invasion of Ukraine: “It is unclear who attacked whom”
Viktor Orbán helps Putin and denies Ukraine the national sovereignty he asks for Hungary

The Hungarian Constitution approved in 2011 and its positive aspects

The Orbán government, supported by the Fidesz party (of national-conservative ideology), has been in power for 16 years with an absolute majority, so comfortable that it was able to enact a new Constitution in 2011, which came into force on January 1, 2012. The previous Constitution had been approved in 1949, during the communist dictatorship, and had been amended in 1989, after the fall of communism.

The 2012 Constitution introduced many laudable things from a liberal-conservative point of view. One of the most noteworthy and laudable is found in its Article II:

Human dignity shall be inviolable. Every human being has the right to life and to human dignity; embryonic and fetal life shall be subject to protection from the moment of conception.

Likewise, its Article J gives great importance and protection to the family and marriage, something which I also find commendable:

(1) Hungary will protect the institution of marriage as the union of a man and a woman established by voluntary decision, and the family as the foundation of the nation's survival.
(2) Hungary will encourage the commitment to having children.
(3) The protection of the family will be regulated by a fundamental law.

This Constitution also proclaims freedom of enterprise (Article M) and freedom of thought, conscience, and religion (Article VIII), establishing a separation between church and state but including a framework for collaboration between them (a departure from the secularism of countries like France). Furthermore, this Constitution recognizes Hungary's Christian roots. The text begins with the expression "God bless the Hungarians" and states: "We are proud that our King Saint Stephen built the Hungarian state on solid foundations and integrated our country into Christian Europe a thousand years ago."

Hungary maintains an abortion law 15 years later

A text like this has great merit in today's world, where there is immense pressure—especially in Europe—for national legislation to conform to the ideological dogmas of the left. That much is fair to acknowledge. The problem arises when it comes to applying those principles. April 18th will mark 15 years since the approval of that Constitution, and, unfortunately, one of its most important points has been shelved for three lustrums: I am referring to the protection of unborn babies.

Abortion in Hungary is regulated by Law LXXIX of 1992 on the Protection of Fetal Life. This law was passed by a government headed by Prime Minister József Antall, the first democratically elected leader after the fall of communism and a member of the Hungarian Democratic Forum, a Christian Democratic party that, since 2009, has been part of the European Conservatives and Reformists (ECR) group. Paradoxically, it was a time-limit law that established abortion as a right up to 12 weeks of pregnancy, with exceptions that extended that limit to 24 weeks. An abortion law, very similar to the one passed two years earlier by the socialists in Spain. Thus, rather than a law protecting fetal life, it was actually a law leaving unborn babies unprotected.

Given the time that has passed since the adoption of the new Hungarian Constitution in 2011, it is difficult to understand why that abortion law is still in force 15 years later. The law has undergone minor changes, specifically in 2022, when the nationalist party Mi Hazánk promoted a reform that succeeded in introducing the requirement to listen to the unborn baby's heartbeat. But nothing more. According to data published by Prolifeeurope.org, Hungary's abortion rate is slightly higher than Spain's.

Today, 15 years after proclaiming the protection of prenatal life in its Constitution, Hungary still has proabortion legislation. Orbán's party has had a comfortable majority to change this law, but has refused. This is the same thing we saw in Spain during Mariano Rajoy's term, who promised to reform the abortion law to "strengthen the protection of the right to life" and, once in power, betrayed his promise.

Hungary's disappointing results in a Heritage Foundation index

There are other indicators that show that Orbán's already long term in office has not had the desired outcome in other areas. We can find one of these indicators in the Heritage Foundation's Index of Economic Freedom, a conservative organization that has openly praised Orbán, stating that his leadership in Hungary "on immigration, family policy, and the importance of the nation-state is a model for conservative governance."

Paradoxically, in that index, Hungary has an overall score of 62.5 in 2026: the worst score of any country in the European Union (EU). That index gives Spain, with a coalition government of socialists and communists, an overall score of 66.8. Ireland, the highest-ranked EU country, has a score of 83.3. In terms of government integrity, a factor that the Heritage Foundation associates with political corruption, Hungary scores 44, again the worst score in the EU. To give some perspective, Spain, which has serious problems with political corruption related to its government, has a score of 64.2.

Let's turn now to the chapter on property rights. The Heritage Foundation notes that this component "assesses the extent to which a country’s legal framework allows individuals to acquire, hold, and use private property and the extent to which these rights are secured by applicable laws that the government enforces effectively." Hungary scores 67.3, again the worst mark in the EU. Spain, whose legislation is heavily influenced by socialist policies, scores 88.

Frankly, these are terrible results. Orbán has had 16 years to make serious reforms in Hungary, but in the economic sphere and regarding the integrity of institutions, something similar has happened as with the abortion issue: it's very disappointing.

Orbán's friendly relationship with the Iranian dictatorship

In foreign policy, Orbán is a staunch ally of the United States and Israel, which I think is excellent, as both countries are historically strong bastions of freedom, but at the same time he cultivates friendships that are scandalous for a conservative leader. Among these friendships is the Islamist dictatorship of Iran. In 2015, Orbán made an official visit to Iran, during which he signed a series of agreements with that dictatorship. During that visit, Orbán boasted of the "friendly cooperation between Hungary and Iran." However, Orbán has recently aligned himself with Trump on Iran following the start of the US military intervention against that Islamist dictatorship.

Orbán's strategic alliance with communist China

Currently, along with the Spanish socialist Pedro Sánchez, Orbán is one of the main European partners of the Chinese communist dictatorship. This relationship is not only reflected in the increasing weight of Chinese investments in Hungary, but also in the fact that Orbán has used his veto power in the EU to block criticism of China for restricting freedoms in Hong Kong. Along the same lines, and perhaps forgetting the damage that communism did to his country, in 2024 Orbán signed a comprehensive strategic partnership agreement with Xi Jinping during the Chinese dictator's visit to Budapest.

Orbán's affinity for Vladimir Putin's dictatorship

In conclusion, Viktor Orbán has displayed a truly shameful attitude regarding the Russian invasion of Ukraine, a country whose people are defending their nation with admirable patriotism against an unprovoked aggression by Putin's dictatorship. Orbán has largely adopted the Kremlin's narrative, which is hardly surprising, given that he and Putin are close friends. In fact, Orban's campaign for these elections has based much of its messaging on promoting hatred of Ukraine, a very despicable attitude and a stab in the back to a country that is defending itself against an invasion. That attitude of Orbán led four years ago to Polish conservatives distancing themselves from him and practically canceling all relations with Hungary, something unheard of, considering the historical brotherhood of that country with Poland.

Conclusions

Taking everything into account, personally, if I were Hungarian, I would cast a blank ballot today, because I don't see any political option in that country that convinces me. Orbán and Fidesz have done things that seem indefensible to me from a liberal-conservative point of view. I cannot support with my vote a party that maintains an abortion law after having had 16 years of absolute majorities to repeal it, just as in my country I refuse to support the People's Party (PP), that did exactly the same thing. Nor can I support a party that, after 16 years in power, breaks records for political corruption and economic socialism, records verified by a conservative organization that is by no means suspected of hostility towards the Fidesz party. Finally, I refuse to support a ruler who has allied himself with dictatorships like Russia and China, declared enemies of the West and in turn allies of the terrorist regime of Iran.

---

Photo: Facebook Viktor Orbán.