US President Donald Trump publicly urged Hungarians to “Get out and vote for Viktor Orban” on Truth Social as Hungary headed into crucial national elections. Prime Minister Viktor Orban, who has blocked much European aid to Ukraine, criticized the EU and cultivated a close rapport with Trump, styling himself as “MAGA’s man in Europe” with slogans such as “Make Europe great again!” and “MAGA there, MEGA here.” The election outcome will test whether that camaraderie helped Orban and whether Trump can influence a broader transnational far-right project.
The Trump administration’s 2025 national security strategy framed much of Europe as a civilizational battleground, criticizing transnational bodies and migration policies and calling for resistance to a largely liberal continent. Observers say Trump and MAGA’s outreach to Orban should be seen in this context. Historian Timothy Snyder called Orban “central to Trumpism,” highlighting Orban’s symbolic importance to the movement.
But can Trump’s endorsement—or a last-minute visit from Vice President JD Vance—boost Orban at the polls? Polls throughout the year suggested Orban’s Fidesz party was trailing the opposition led by Peter Magyar by double digits. Analysts including Zsuzsanna Vegh of the German Marshall Fund say Trump’s and Vance’s interventions mainly energize existing supporters rather than persuade undecided voters, who are more concerned with domestic issues like the cost of living. Vance’s trip also signaled to other European hard-right groups that the US MAGA movement backs Orban and seeks to expand an illiberal European alliance.
Europe’s electoral record with pro-Trump endorsements is mixed. In Poland, a pro-Trump nationalist backed by the far-right Law and Justice party narrowly won the presidency after meeting Trump, a result some cast as evidence of a rising “Trumpist” right in Central and Eastern Europe. In Romania, by contrast, far-right candidate George Simion failed to win despite visibly aligning with Trump; analysts argued that domestic grievances and weak ties to Trump mattered more than the endorsement itself.
There are signs of tension between Trump and parts of the European far right. Some leaders criticized Trump’s policies—tariffs, threats toward Greenland, and other interventions—that they viewed as interfering in European sovereignty or contrary to their interests. When Trump once floated annexing Greenland, figures such as Alice Weidel (AfD), Nigel Farage, and Jordan Bardella (National Rally) condemned the move as hostile or a breach of non-interference. Orban avoided directly criticizing Trump, calling such issues “in-house.”
A January 2026 ECFR poll suggested the US has lost influence in Europe under Trump: only 16% of EU citizens saw the US as an ally, while 20% labeled it an enemy or rival. That decline in American standing complicates any straightforward transfer of political capital from Trump to European candidates.
In short, Trump’s visible support may help mobilize Orban’s base and signal ideological solidarity to European hard-right groups, but experts doubt it is decisive among undecided voters focused on domestic concerns. The election will reveal whether the MAGA–Orban alliance translates into electoral success or exposes limits to Trump’s sway in Europe.
Edited by: Carla Bleiker