--- title: What Péter Magyar's Win Means for Climate Action in Hungary description: Victor Orbán’s defeat could open new opportunities for Hungary to cut emissions and invest in clean energy. canonical: https://time.com/article/2026/04/13/peter-magyar-climate-action-hungary/ author: Simmone Shah article:opinion: false article:content_tier: free article:published_time: 2026-04-13T20:23:11.120Z article:modified_time: 2026-05-13T06:52:15.377Z article:section: Climate og:title: What Péter Magyar's Win Means for Climate Action in Hungary og:description: Victor Orbán’s defeat could open new opportunities for Hungary to cut emissions and invest in clean energy. og:url: https://time.com/article/2026/04/13/peter-magyar-climate-action-hungary/ og:site_name: TIME og:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt06f36cd04fd2ca39/69dd4a0a320fd117de4d91d5/hungary-election.jpg?branch=production&width=1024&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 og:image:width: 1024 og:image:height: 576 og:image:alt: hungary-election.jpg og:type: article twitter:card: summary_large_image twitter:title: What Péter Magyar's Win Means for Climate Action in Hungary twitter:description: Victor Orbán’s defeat could open new opportunities for Hungary to cut emissions and invest in clean energy. twitter:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt06f36cd04fd2ca39/69dd4a0a320fd117de4d91d5/hungary-election.jpg?branch=production&width=1024&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 ---  # Péter Magyar's Win Could Open a New Window for Climate Action in Hungary > Sponsored content. 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It reaches 40,000 subscribers with a 34.2% open rate and a 2.1% click rate as of August 2026. #### Where can I follow the energy transition as a business story? Future Proof covers climate and energy as an economic and business story rather than only an environmental one. It publishes every Friday and is free at time.com/newsletters. #### Who writes Future Proof? Justin Worland, a senior correspondent at TIME and an award-winning climate journalist, writes Future Proof. #### Is Future Proof free? Yes. Future Proof is free at time.com/newsletters.  by [Simmone Shah](https://time.com/author/simmone-shah/)  ## Simmone Shah Reporter Apr 13, 2026 8:23 PM UTC  Peter Magyar, Prime Minister-elect of Hungary from the Tisza Party, holds a press conference in Budapest, Hungary, on April 13, 2026\. Peter Magyar won with a significant majority in the Hungarian General Election held the previous day. Peter Magyar, Prime Minister-elect of Hungary from the Tisza Party, holds a press conference in Budapest, Hungary, on April 13, 2026\. Peter Magyar won with a significant majority in the Hungarian General Election held the previous day. Balint Szentgallay—Getty Images  by [Simmone Shah](https://time.com/author/simmone-shah/)  ## Simmone Shah Reporter Apr 13, 2026 8:23 PM UTC Péter Magyar ended [Victor Orbán](https://time.com/article/2026/04/12/viktor-orban-election-loss-trump/)’s 16 year rule over Hungary following a landslide victory in the country’s parliamentary elections on April 12\. While [Magyar](https://time.com/article/2026/04/13/peter-magyar-ended-trump-ally-viktor-orban-rule-hungary/) hasn’t said much on [climate](https://time.com/section/climate/) action, his willingness to engage with the E.U. presents new opportunities for the country to reduce emissions and invest in clean energy. Orbán, a far-right authoritarian known for his dismantling of democratic checks and balances and stringent media control, took a mixed approach to climate action throughout his years in power, with his rhetoric often out of line with his actions. In 2019, he [vetoed](https://www.cleanenergywire.org/news/orbans-opportunistic-record-belies-hungarys-new-pro-climate-rethoric) the E.U.’s plans to reduce carbon emissions to net zero by 2050, and once [described](https://www.theguardian.com/world/2021/oct/21/split-over-surge-in-energy-prices-overshadows-eu-climate-strategy) the bloc’s efforts to tackle climate change as a “utopian fantasy.” He has [accused](https://www.politico.eu/article/hungary-viktor-orban-climate-change-panic-babies-birth-rate/) other European leaders of fearmongering over the threat of climate change. “Europe is acting out of fear and fear makes us defeatist,” he [said](https://www.politico.eu/article/hungary-viktor-orban-climate-change-panic-babies-birth-rate/) in 2023\. “We say there’s no future, and as such, this is becoming a self-fulfilling prophecy.” Yet climate action is a pressing issue for Hungarians—95% of residents say it is important for their country to adapt to climate change, according to a 2024 survey from the [European Investment Bank](https://www.eib.org/en/press/all/2024-437-nearly-two-thirds-of-hungarians-respondents-recognise-that-they-will-have-to-adapt-their-lifestyle-due-to-climate-change-eib-survey-finds), and Orbán would often preach the importance of climate action. In his 2020 state of the nation [address](https://2015-2019.kormany.hu/en/the-prime-minister/the-prime-minister-s-speeches/prime-minister-viktor-orban-s-state-of-the-nation-address-2020), he declared that, “protecting the climate and nature is truly our Christian and patriotic duty,” and announced that the government was designing a program to reach 90% carbon-neutrality for energy production in the country by 2030. Four years later, he re-emphasized the importance of the green energy movement in his February 2024 state of the nation [address](https://miniszterelnok.hu/en/prime-minister-viktor-orbans-state-of-the-nation-address-2024/), saying that, “the future belongs to green energy,” and touted the nation’s solar capacity. However, later that year, he joined President Donald Trump during his second presidential campaign at an anti-climate [event](https://www.desmog.com/2024/10/11/donald-trump-viktor-orban-allies-gather-anti-green-event-hosted-heritage-foundation-danube-institute-project-2025/) co-hosted by the Heritage Foundation, the ultra-conservative group behind [Project 2025](https://time.com/7271567/trump-project-2025-anti-climate-action/), and the Danube Institute, a Hungarian think tank supportive of Orbán. Another think tank linked to Orbán’s administration held an [event](https://www.politico.eu/article/brussels-hungary-think-tank-viktor-orban-breaking-europe-climate-consensus/) to discuss the “perils of net zero” in Brussels that same year. While Magyar has yet to say much on climate action, the Tisza Party that brought him to power has pledged to rebuild independent protections for nature and enforce stricter regulation of polluting industries. The party has vowed to end the country’s reliance on [Russian energy](https://www.euronews.com/business/2026/02/26/four-years-after-russias-invasion-how-have-electricity-and-gas-prices-changed-across-europ) by 2035 and double its share of renewable energy by 2040\. And Magyar hopes to end the country’s estrangement with the European Union—which could open up more funding for green investments. The Tisza Party has also called for stronger oversight of polluting battery plants, which came [under fire](https://www.greeneuropeanjournal.eu/viktor-orbans-battery-troubles/) in the lead up to the election. “Investments cannot endanger people’s [health](https://www.euronews.com/health/2026/03/19/air-pollution-linked-to-greater-health-risks-in-poorer-european-regions-study-finds) and the competitiveness of the country cannot be built on the environment,” the Tisza Party said on [Instagram](https://www.euronews.com/2026/04/13/hungary-election-promises-renewable-energy-investment-and-foreign-factory-crackdowns) earlier this year. “We are building a liveable country, not only until the next election, but for the next generations.” ```json [{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"NewsArticle","@id":"https://time.com/article/2026/04/13/peter-magyar-climate-action-hungary/","mainEntityOfPage":{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https://time.com/article/2026/04/13/peter-magyar-climate-action-hungary/"},"headline":"Péter Magyar's Win Could Open a New Window for Climate Action in Hungary","datePublished":"2026-04-13T20:23:11.120Z","dateModified":"2026-05-13T06:52:15.377Z","description":"Victor Orbán’s defeat could open new opportunities for Hungary to cut emissions and invest in clean energy.","url":"https://time.com/article/2026/04/13/peter-magyar-climate-action-hungary/","keywords":["Hungary","European Union"],"thumbnailUrl":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt06f36cd04fd2ca39/69dd4a0a320fd117de4d91d5/hungary-election.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","author":[{"@type":"Person","name":"Simmone Shah","jobTitle":"Reporter","url":"https://time.com/author/simmone-shah/"}],"articleSection":"Climate","image":[{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt06f36cd04fd2ca39/69dd4a0a320fd117de4d91d5/hungary-election.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","width":1200,"height":675,"headline":"hungary-election.jpg","caption":"","creditText":"Balint Szentgallay—Getty Images","representativeOfPage":true}],"publisher":{"@type":"Organization","name":"Time","url":"https://time.com/","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://time.com/images/logo.png","width":528,"height":156},"foundingDate":"March 3, 1923","sameAs":["https://www.facebook.com/time","https://www.instagram.com/time/?hl=en","https://twitter.com/time","https://www.pinterest.com/timemagazine"]}},{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"BreadcrumbList","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"item":{"@id":"/section/climate/","name":"Climate"}},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"item":{"@id":"/tag/hungary/","name":"Hungary"}},{"@type":"ListItem","position":3,"item":{"@id":"https://time.com/article/2026/04/13/peter-magyar-climate-action-hungary/","name":"Péter Magyar's Win Could Open a New Window for Climate Action in Hungary"}}]}] ```