Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu saw his closest European ally soundly defeated in the Hungarian elections on Sunday.
The outcome has shaken the country’s longest-serving leader during an election year and given encouragement to the opposition, which views the upcoming vote as a pivotal moment for the nation.
The Israeli leader had openly supported his European counterpart, even recording a personal video message endorsing him at a political conference. “Viktor Orbán means safety, security, stability,” the Israeli leader said in the recorded statement. His son, who has developed his own connections with the European leader’s party, attended the event in person and referred to the European capital as “almost a second home.”
The Israeli leader has also praised his ally’s apparent steps against antisemitism, even as the European leader faced allegations of antisemitism for rewriting aspects of Holocaust history and for negative portrayals of certain political figures.
In a social media statement, the Israeli leader called his ally a “true friend of Israel, who stood firmly by Israel’s side in the face of unjust international vilification.” He then congratulated the winner of the election.
Israeli media reported that a pollster who works for both the Israeli leader and the US president also advised the European leader’s campaign.
The deep relationship between the two leaders, built over 15 years, extends beyond shared political messaging. Last year, after an international court issued arrest warrants for the Israeli leader over a war, the European country announced its withdrawal from the court, making it one of the few places the Israeli leader can visit without fear of arrest.
The European leader has repeatedly blocked a regional bloc from issuing condemnation of Israel or taking punitive measures, as such actions require unanimous agreement.
For the Israeli opposition, the European leader’s loss is seen as a hopeful sign and as evidence that even the most entrenched governments can be voted out.
A lawmaker from a left-wing party called the outcome “a message of hope.” “The idea that a leader who controls the institutions and the media is immune to defeat has been shattered,” she told a news outlet. “The lesson for Israel is unity, perseverance, and faith in civil society.”
Since the current Israeli government took office, the opposition has repeatedly pointed to the European leader’s country as a cautionary model of what they argue the Israeli leader is pursuing at home: weakening checks and balances and undermining judicial and media independence.
“Israel will not become Hungary” was a central slogan of a mass protest movement against the Israeli government’s judicial overhaul. A recent report described Israel as moving toward a “partially authoritarian” system. Unlike his European ally, the report noted, the Israeli leader never formally declared his country a “non-liberal democracy,” but his government’s actions, it argued, are bringing it close to one.
The European leader’s defeat does not guarantee victory for those trying to oust the Israeli premier, though it does offer a lesson.
“Change does not happen only in the corridors of Parliament,” the lawmaker said. “It begins in the streets, with people who refuse to give up.” But she noted it requires unity between opposition parties, something Israel has often lacked. The Israeli leader’s critics are encouraged by the message from the European leader’s defeat, but whether that optimism is justified remains to be seen.
