1. He's as tough as nails
Hungarian politics is not for the faint of heart. Most people would run and hide under a blanket if they had to endure the kinds of attacks Peter Magyar has. Whether it was ex-wife laying out all their dirty laundry in a 105-minute tell all. His ex-girlfriend secretly recording him and then selling the tapes. Ad hominem attacks like calling him “Pszicho Peti”. Being accosted right in his face by a Fidesz pit bull by the name of Tamas Menczer. Or relentless negative media coverage by state-run media outlets.
Fidesz hasn’t attacked him on the substantive points (they would struggle), so they focus on vicious personal attacks to try to get rid of him that way.
But Peter Magyar hasn’t run off with his tail between his legs. He has been able to dust himself off and carry on. To me he has shown extreme bravery in putting himself out there day-in-day-out against an engrained system that wants to retain its power no matter what.
Strangely, the attacks seem to make him stronger and more confident. It’s like the more storms he’s weathered the more confident he is in handling the next one. And it also makes his support base back him even more.
2. He's shameless
It’s like Donald Trump. Someone who feels ashamed and embarrassed after every attack will wither faster than you can say “next election.” Peter Magyar has that lucky trait in politics, which is a certain level of shamelessness that let’s you carry on even when most people would with withdraw into their shell.
It’s like Orban, doe he feel any shame for stealing from his fellow people? No – he brazenly goes out their day in day out and acts like nothing at all has happened.
A certain level of shamelessness is needed to survive in the dog eat dog world of politics.
3. He's high energy and a hard worker
It’s actually incredible how much he has done in just 12 months. He has given hundreds of speeches, interviews and press conferences. He’s visited hundreds of villages, towns and cities throughout Hungary. He’s done tours of hospitals, children’s care homes and flood zones. He’s done marathons and gone to festivals and concerts. He’s taken sassy clap-back videos in his kitchen. He’s shown us his skills of gardening. He posts on social media at least three times a day. He’s a European Parliamentarian and also travels to other European cities to build political ties. And, he’s establishing the Tisza Szigetek and Talpra Magyarok movements, while sourcing 106 candidates for the 2026 Hungarian elections. And he does all this while writining sassy Facebook comments under news posts and engaging with his supporters.
There is no doubt he is a high energy hard worker. Compare this to Orban who moves around like a sloth. Orban claims not to even use a phone with internet so he certainly doesn’t have that online agility, and you never see him interacting with the people anymore.
I think people also like that Peter Magyar shows that he will work hard for them and that he has the work ethic to take on the monumental challenges facing Hungary should Tisza win the elections.
4. He's funny and self-depracating
One of the ways he deflects the attacks is my making fun of them. When Orban tried to dismiss him as one of those slim-fit, avocado latte drinking upstarts, he made a latte avocado in his kitchen and popped it up on social media. When the state media attacked him for adjusting his privates in the EU Parliament, he posed with bananas and made banana smoothies. When people were saying his pants were too tight he did a social media poll on whether he should buy new pants.
He’s always making sassy comments on social media (like calling Rogan Antal “Toni” or telling Tamas Menczer he has bad breath after Menczer accosted him), reacting quickly to the news of the day under news posts.
The best bit? He seems to be enjoying himself.
5. He's super smart
One of the common comments about Peter Magyar is that he is very intelligent and speaks extremely eloquently in Hungarian. He comes from a legal/political family background and it shows.
He has a quick memory and seems to be able to recall facts during interviews and debates quickly. When he met with various official outside of children’s care homes he was able to hold his own in areas that the local experts should have been more knowledgeable in.
He is an incredible debater and quick on feet with sassy come-backs and answers. Analysts often say that this is a big danger for Fidesz politicians who want to accost him (like Tamas Menczer did) because they will struggle to keep up.
He can speak at length without notes on a variety of topics. For someone who is new to politics it shows that his base level of smarts is high and he’ll only improve with time.
6. He's innately politically savvy
This one seems too obvious to even state. Anyone who builds a political party who is neck-and-neck with Fidesz in the polls within a calendar year is obviously incredibly politically savvy. It’s like he was born to do this. I wonder if Fidesz isn’t kicking itself for not utilising his skills more effectively before he defected.
Let’s count the ways: He positions himself as Centrist – not allowing himself to be painted as a Lefty. He argues that both Orban and Gyurcsany need to go — and there’s something in that for basically everybody. He knows the importance of regional Hungary and is non-stop criss-crossing the country holding talks in villages, towns and cities. He is bypassing traditional media and communicating directly with the people via Facebook (like Obama did in 2008, and Trump did with Twitter in 2016 and podcasts in 2024). He knows the importance of genuine engagement on social media (not just having your comms team post for you) and is always commenting sassy little remarks under news articles, answering people’s questions, posting real-life photos like of him changing a care tyre etc. Incredibly, he even responded to one of my comments!! He knows that Hungary is ultimately a conservative country and so he has reclaimed patriotic symbols like the flag and national poems as a symbol for all — not just Fidesz.
7. He's a fast learner
His interviewing style has vastly improved over 12 months. Initially, he wanted to say so much that he spoke to fast and too aggressively now he’s calmer and more understandable. He’s made some mistakes and can apologise and learn from them. For example, after he won the EU Parliamentary elections he went clubbing and ended up being kicked out by the bouncers in a chokehold. The next day he apologised and said it wouldn’t happen again, and it hasn’t. When he first started he also made some claims that didn’t quite come true. For example, he said that Rogan Antal should get his private jet ready for a flight to a non-extradition country because MP’s revelations would land him in prison — and this didn’t happen so it fell flat. Or, he would accuse journalists who wrote tough articles of being partisan, which many saw as being unfair in some cases. He’s stopped doing this kind of thing.
It’s a steep learning curve, but Peter Magyar is showing he has the ability to do it.
8. He's agile
One of his most impressive traits is his ability to get organised fast. Whether it’s bringing one of his first rallies together in a few weeks. Or stepping in to do the New Year’s Eve address when the President said he wouldn’t do it. Or getting wind that his ex-girlfriend was going to release secret recordings and getting ahead of it at a press conference the day prior. Or getting his merch webshop up and running within a few weeks. Not to mention, on a daily basis responding to news articles and what politicians are saying within mere minutes on social media.
With not a big lead up to the 2026 elections and having to go from zero to a fully fledged political party in that time his speed and agility is an essential character trait.
It also shows that he is able to motivation and empower his team to take action. And that he is able to get his team to bring ideas to life quickly and effectively.
9. He's aggressive
You cannot take on Viktor Orban, the well-oiled Fidesz machine, and oligarchs who would like things to stay exactly as they are thank you very much and be a sweet little angel. You will get eaten alive.
One of the reasons some people don’t like Peter Magyar is that they find him to be aggressive. But unfortunately the reality is that if you want a genuine opposition to Orban that is one character trait that is a non-negotiable.
His aggression means he is not afraid to name names when calling people out. And it means he doesn’t take attacks lying down.
10. He's patriotic
Hungary is a pretty conservative place and voters will never vote for someone who they don’t see as patriotic and nationalistic. Peter Magyar is proud to be Hungarian – and you can tell that he is not faking it. He constantly quotes Hungarian poetry. He asked his fans to start bringing flags to his rallies. He talks about a vision of Hungary that is for all Hungarians not just a select few. He often ends social posts and speeches with lines like “A haza minden előtt” (“Country before everything!”).
He comes from an esteemed Hungarian family including judges, lawyers and a former President, and you can just tell that he comes from one of those families that are hugely patriotic.
Wathchouts
He talks very fast and sometimes more combatively than he needs to. It can be a bit jarring for someone who is just casually listening in or getting to know him. More light and shade within how he communicates to match the moment might help him.
He needs to put his girlfriend choice to a national vote. He has had bad luck now with his ex-wife and ex-girlfriend both doing tell-all interviews, so he really needs to vet the next one better.
Unfortunately, he needs to be much more careful with what he says in private even to people he thinks he trusts. His private conversations have been recorded now multiple times, and it’s never pretty. Therefore, no matter how hard it is he has to act as if every conversation he is having will be made public.
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