{"id":50582,"date":"2026-04-14T15:42:01","date_gmt":"2026-04-14T15:42:01","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/foreignnewstoday.com\/?p=50582"},"modified":"2026-04-14T15:42:01","modified_gmt":"2026-04-14T15:42:01","slug":"what-orbans-fall-from-power-means-for-research-around-the-world","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/foreignnewstoday.com\/?p=50582","title":{"rendered":"What Orb\u00e1n\u2019s fall from power means for research around the world"},"content":{"rendered":"


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During his position as Prime Minister, Victor Orb\u00e1n overhauled the Hungarian higher education system to align institutions with his political party’s conservative ideology.<\/span>Credit: Sean Gallup\/Getty<\/span><\/p>\n<\/figcaption><\/picture><\/figure>\n

The electoral defeat of Viktor Orb\u00e1n after sixteen years in power is being welcomed by scientists in Hungary \u2014 and elsewhere. Researchers who watched Orb\u00e1n dismantle academic freedoms, strip university autonomy<\/a>, and saw Hungary blocked from EU funding now cautiously hope that his successor, P\u00e9ter Magyar, will repair the damage. <\/p>\n

Some are watching for ripple effects outside Europe too: Orb\u00e1n\u2019s systematic erosion of university independence became a model for the changes to research now underway in the United States<\/a>. And Hungary was increasingly seen as a hub for Chinese influence in Europe under Orb\u00e1n, with plans to host the first Chinese university campus in the EU. <\/p>\n

Magyar\u2019s Tisza party won a two-thirds majority in Sunday\u2019s parliamentary election \u2014 sufficient to amend Hungary\u2019s constitution and undo many of Orb\u00e1n\u2019s structural changes. But how far that mandate will extend into the university and research sectors remains to be seen, and researchers warn that simply restoring the old system may not be enough to repair the Hungarian university sector.<\/p>\n

\u201cWhat will happen to Hungarian science now is still very uncertain and unpredictable, but at least we have some hope that the future will bring some change,\u201d says Imola Wilhelm, a neuroscientist at the Biological Research Centre in Szeged, Hungary. \u201cWhat we really need is stability and transparency. In the last few years, the scientific environment has been so turbulent here.\u201d<\/p>\n

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Peter Magyar, expected to become the next prime minister of Hungary, aims to persuade the European Commission to unlock \u20ac17 billion in funds frozen.<\/span>Credit: Attila Husejnow\/SOPA Images\/LightRocket via Getty<\/span><\/p>\n<\/figcaption><\/picture><\/figure>\n

Restoring trust<\/h2>\n

Under Orb\u00e1n\u2019s Fidesz party, Hungary\u2019s scientific system was reshaped. The reorganization of the Hungarian Academy of Sciences reduced the autonomy of its research network, while many universities were transferred into foundations governed by boards whose members were often politically appointed by Fidesz. In response, the Council of the European Union, a group of government ministers from each of the bloc\u2019s 27 member states, agreed in 2022 to freeze around \u20ac6.3 billion (US$7 billion) funding for research and exchange programmes for higher-education and cultural institutions in Hungary, including at 21 universities.<\/p>\n

In his victory speech, Magyar pledged his party \u201cwill do everything to restore the rule of law, plural democracy, and the system of checks and balances\u201d.<\/p>\n

Science is unlikely to be the government\u2019s immediate priority compared with sectors such as healthcare and education, says Bal\u00e1zs Lengyel, an economic geographer at the Corvinus University of Budapest. But some changes won\u2019t require new policies. Orb\u00e1n\u2019s stance on academic freedom led to many of his colleagues and collaborators refusing to travel to Hungary on principle. \u201cI expect that this will change,\u201d Lengyel says.<\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

\u2018Politicians shouldn\u2019t meddle\u2019: new chief of Europe\u2019s major research funder shares priorities<\/p>\n

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Magyar\u2019s pledge to restore relations with the European Union, along with restoring institutional autonomy, should at least enable Hungarian universities and research centres to rejoin European projects, says Kurt Deketelaere, Secretary-General of the League of European Research Universities. \u201cWe can also expect the PM and his government to be supportive and protective of academic freedom, unlike his predecessor,\u201d he says. \u201cThere is a great opportunity for Hungary now to support EU research and innovation policy.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cI expect participation in European research to become easier, but it\u2019s too early to say when,\u201d says Lengyel. \u201cWe want to be full members of the European research area again. It\u2019s not just the lack of money. It\u2019s a loss of social capital and trust.\u201d<\/p>\n

Deketelaere adds that he hopes the Hungarian election result can inspire other countries that have experienced similar challenges. \u201cThere is still hope … at the end of the day democracy and academic freedom will prevail\u201d.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n


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