The Hungarian election campaign has been turbulent for weeks, but a new scandal has alarmed even seasoned observers, with many likening it to a return to dictatorship and Communist-era tactics.

Last week it emerged that the Constitution Protection Office (Alkotmányvédelmi Hivatal), one of Hungary’s five intelligence services, is believed to have attempted to infiltrate the opposition Tisza Party to obstruct its election participation or reduce its chances of winning. The agency reportedly tried to recruit IT technicians who maintained the party’s systems to gain access to internal data and manipulate the vote.

The operation is said to have begun in July 2025, by which time the Tisza Party had already emerged as a serious threat to Prime Minister Viktor Orbán. Tisza was polling well ahead of Orbán’s Fidesz and was forecast to win the parliamentary election on April 12. There is no evidence that Orbán personally ordered the operation, but the Constitution Protection Office reports directly to the prime minister’s office. The government has not denied the revelations, instead framing the actions as a response to an alleged Ukrainian espionage attempt without providing details.

Investigative outlet Direkt36 broke the story on March 24 and the next day published a 90-minute interview with Bence Szabó, a former police captain from the National Bureau of Investigation’s cybercrime unit, who detailed the case. Szabó, who specialized in online child pornography investigations, resigned shortly before the interview and was later dismissed.

Szabó alleges that in July 2025 the Constitution Protection Office pressured his unit to open an investigation into alleged child pornography and to seize computer equipment from two suspects. The suspects turned out to be the technicians who managed the Tisza Party’s IT systems, not child porn offenders. According to Szabó, the intelligence service had earlier tried and failed to recruit the two men and feared they would expose its activities. After the hardware was seized, the intelligence agency copied data from it without authorization.

Last autumn the Tisza Party’s app was at the center of controversy when personal data belonging to roughly 200,000 supporters was leaked publicly. The government and Fidesz blamed Ukraine, since Ukrainian developers had worked on the app. Szabó’s testimony suggests the breach may instead have been orchestrated by elements within Orbán’s apparatus.

In his video testimony Szabó describes a months-long operation and says he became a whistleblower after his warnings that the probe was politically motivated were ignored. He recounts defying orders to “find” incriminating material on the two technicians and ultimately taking the information to the media because he could find no institution willing to act. “I swore an oath,” he says. “I want to serve my country, not a specific group of people, like a party.”

The video had drawn about 2.5 million views. Direkt36 co-founder András Pethő said the report raises serious questions about the political neutrality and independence of Hungary’s state agencies and intelligence services. Political scientist Miklós Sukósd compared the episode to the end of Hungary’s communist-era state party in 1989–90, arguing that today’s ruling party is unwilling to relinquish power and is flouting democratic rules.

Government figures have portrayed the affair, dubbed “Hungary’s Watergate,” as anti-espionage measures against Ukraine, with at least one accused person described—without publicly available evidence—as a Ukrainian spy. Over the weekend the government published a video on its Facebook page showing the 19-year-old’s interrogation by the Constitution Protection Office. Szabó has since been charged with misconduct in public office.

The government has also filed espionage charges against investigative journalist Szabolcs Panyi, whom it has labeled a “Ukrainian spy.” Panyi, who had reported on alleged secret ties between Russia and the Hungarian state, called the accusations absurd.

Szabó has been widely hailed by anti-government Hungarians. Tisza Party leader and prime ministerial candidate Péter Magyar warned the Orbán regime that harming Szabó would bring the people out against it: “If you touch a single hair of his head, you will have the people against you,” he said. Szabó, in interviews, presents himself as a modest official who felt bound by his oath and deeply troubled by orders that violated it.

Orbán has not addressed the case directly. In a video he called on Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy to “summon his agents back home,” without naming anyone. At a campaign event on March 29 Orbán made a grim, military-flavored remark: “I still have a few bullets left in the magazine that I can use.”

This article was originally written in German.

Hungary’s election campaign has been rocked by allegations that a state intelligence service tried to infiltrate the main opposition party to disrupt its electoral chances. The Constitution Protection Office (Alkotmányvédelmi Hivatal), one of Hungary’s five intelligence agencies, is accused of attempting to recruit IT staff who maintained the Tisza Party’s systems to gain access to internal data and undermine the party’s election bid.

Investigative outlet Direkt36 published the story on March 24 and followed it with a 90-minute video interview the next day featuring Bence Szabó, a former senior investigator in the National Bureau of Investigation’s (NNI) cybercrime unit. Szabó, who resigned shortly before the interview and has since been dismissed, says the operation began in July 2025. By then, polls showed the Tisza Party leading Prime Minister Viktor Orbán’s Fidesz and poised to win the April 12 parliamentary vote.

Szabó alleges the Constitution Protection Office pressured his unit to open an investigation into alleged child pornography involving two technicians. Those individuals, he says, were actually responsible for the Tisza Party’s IT infrastructure. The office, which is not authorized to conduct standalone criminal probes, purportedly sought seizures of the technicians’ hardware. Szabó contends the child-pornography claim was fabricated to justify taking devices and that agents copied data from the seized equipment without authorization.

Last autumn, the Tisza Party’s mobile app was found to have exposed personal data of roughly 200,000 supporters. The government and Fidesz blamed Ukraine because the app was developed by Ukrainian IT specialists. Szabó’s testimony suggests the data breach may instead have been orchestrated by elements linked to Orbán’s apparatus.

Szabó says he raised concerns internally, arguing the probe was politically motivated, but his warnings were ignored. He describes defying orders to fabricate incriminating material and ultimately going public because he could not find anyone within the state willing to act. His allegations and the interview have drawn wide attention: the video has been viewed by millions and been labeled by some as “Hungary’s Watergate.”

Journalists and opposition figures have condemned the revelations as an abuse of state power and a threat to democratic norms. Direkt36 co-founder András Pethő said the reporting raises “serious questions about the independent, politically neutral work of the Hungarian government agencies and intelligence services.” Political scientist Miklós Sukosd compared the episode to tactics not seen since the end of the Communist-era state party, asserting that Fidesz appears unwilling to cede power and is willing to bend democratic rules.

The government has not denied the reporting but framed the events as counter-espionage against Ukraine, without providing specific evidence. Several ministers and pro-government voices described one of the accused technicians as a Ukrainian spy. The administration even published a video of a 19-year-old’s interrogation by the Constitution Protection Office. Meanwhile, Szabó has been charged with misconduct in public office.

Investigative journalist Szabolcs Panyi, who reported on alleged secret ties between the Hungarian government and Russia, has also been accused by authorities of espionage and characterized as a Ukrainian agent. Panyi called the charges “absurd.”

Opposition leader and Tisza candidate Péter Magyar has rallied in Szabó’s defense, warning the government against harming him. Szabó, however, has downplayed any hero image, saying he acted from an oath to serve the country rather than a political faction.

Prime Minister Viktor Orbán has not addressed the case directly. He accused Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy of recalling agents in a video statement but did not identify targets. At a campaign event on March 29, Orbán made a veiled, militaristic remark: “I still have a few bullets left in the magazine that I can use,” a comment critics interpreted as menacing.

The scandal has intensified scrutiny of Hungary’s intelligence services and raised broader concerns about state interference in the electoral process as the country approaches a critical parliamentary vote.

This article was originally published in German.