Magyar’s Tisza party secured a huge parliamentary majority in last month’s election.
Peter Magyar has been sworn in as Hungary’s new prime minister, almost a month after parliamentary elections that ended Viktor Orban’s 16 years in power.
Magyar, 45, who leads the centre-right Tisza party, was propelled into office on promises of change after years of economic stagnation under Orban, and strained ties with key allies, including the European Union.
On Saturday, Magyar invited Hungarians to “step through the gate of regime change”.
His party has a huge parliamentary majority, winning 141 of the 199 seats.
However, Magyar faces several challenges in his new role, including restoring Budapest’s relations with the EU, reviving the economy and tackling a budget deficit that reached almost three-quarters of its full-year target by April.
A ceremony was held inside Hungary’s neo-Gothic parliament building as Magyar was sworn in. The EU flag, removed under Orban, was displayed inside the chamber for the first time in 12 years.
The newly appointed parliamentary speaker, Agnes Forsthoffer, used her first decision in office to order the flag’s reinstatement, describing the move as “the first symbolic step on this path [back to Europe]”.
The new prime minister aims to strike a deal with the EU that would unlock around $20bn in frozen funding. The money was withheld over concerns about worsening human rights under Orban and a decline in the rule of law.
During Orban’s tenure, Hungary drifted further away from the EU as ties with Moscow deepened. The former prime minister used his veto in the European Council to oppose sanctions on Russia and block support for Ukraine.
Theofanis Exadaktylos, a professor of European politics at the University of Surrey, told Al Jazeera that Magyar will need to prove he is different from Orban while dealing with the bureaucracy left behind by his predecessor.
“The challenges for the new PM are primarily related to the extensive presence of the previous regime. Orban was in power for such a long time and he has managed to change Hungary substantially from an administrative point of view. To that end, uprooting the previous establishment will be a challenge,” he said.
“The second [challenge] will be to establish himself as different to the previous regime. Considering his background there will be sceptic voices, however let’s not forget that ideologically he belongs to the right,” he continued.
“Nonetheless, his election marks a turning point in Hungary showcasing that the previous regime had started to lose ground in its popular basis. The third challenge is the way he will reconnect Hungary to the European Union: to that end, he has a bit of work to do from a diplomatic point of view to create new allies within the Union.”
Magyar’s rise to prime minister is widely regarded as a remarkable feat. He was largely unknown in Hungarian politics until early 2024, when he became embroiled in a public dispute with Orban’s ruling Fidesz party, of which he had previously been a prominent member.
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