Latest news with #Voks2025
Budapest Times
a day ago
- Politics
- Budapest Times
Over 1.6 million votes submitted in Voks 2025 on Ukraine's accession to EU
Balázs Hidvéghi, State Secretary of the Prime Minister's Cabinet Office, said on Friday that the number of votes submitted in the Voks 2025 referendum on Ukraine's accession to the European Union has exceeded 1.6 million. Hidvéghi said on Facebook that 'the intention to vote is steeply increasing, but the pressure on our country to give in concerning Ukraine is also growing'. 'Neither Brussels, nor Kyiv, nor their servants here want Hungarians to be able to freely decide in the matter,' he added. 'We still insist on having the right to decide, and nobody can take away that right from us,' Hidvéghi said. He said the referendum would continue until June 20 and encouraged everyone to cast their vote.
Budapest Times
28-05-2025
- Politics
- Budapest Times
While Tisza claimed to speak for Hungary, Voks 2025 listens
Tisza's effort was packaged as a grassroots initiative and framed as a bold move to include the public in decision-making. And yet, its execution raises far more questions than it answers. There was no official oversight. No transparency about who voted, how many participated, or how the data was verified—if it was at all. Participants had to submit personal information to a party with known foreign ties. Most notably, the question of Ukraine was quietly slipped into the end of a longer survey, with no context or explanation of the associated risks. In truth, it was a commissioned exercise—something made all the more obvious by how swiftly President Zelensky seized on the result to proclaim: 'See? The Hungarians support Ukraine's EU membership.' A remarkably transparent piece of political theater. If the goal was genuine consultation, why avoid the full picture? Why omit the clear and pressing concerns? Ukraine's accession is not some symbolic gesture. It carries consequences: billions redirected from Central European development, the dismantling of EU agricultural subsidies as Ukraine's massive farmland enters the system, public health threats, and increased security risks from organized crime and weapons trafficking. Not to mention the political instability of fast-tracking a country still at war. These are not fringe concerns. They are well-documented, widely discussed, and of direct relevance to Hungarian citizens. And yet, Tisza's 'referendum' passed over them in silence. Why? Perhaps because the answer had already been decided. The party's leadership has repeatedly voiced support for Ukraine's accession, and its MEPs have publicly embraced Brussels' agenda. What the vote offered was not a national conversation, but a tool to generate headlines. A figure. A claim that Hungarians 'support' something they were never fully informed about. Meanwhile, Voks 2025 gives the Hungarian people the opportunity to decide for themselves, something others would prefer to avoid. Every citizen receives a direct question, unfiltered and unambiguous, and is invited to respond through a process that is legal, verifiable, and backed by precedent. No need to give up personal data. No murky numbers. Just a clear opportunity to be counted. Over 1 million have already voted. That figure alone reveals where public engagement truly lies. What's also clear is that some would prefer this question not to be asked at all. The same voices that celebrated the Tisza vote now cast doubt on Voks 2025, as if a national consultation were somehow dangerous. But if there is nothing to hide, why fear an honest answer? The reality is simple. One vote asked people to sign off on a conclusion already drawn. The other trusts them to draw their own. The stakes are high. Hungary's future is on the table. And Voks 2025 ensures it stays in Hungarian hands.
Budapest Times
23-05-2025
- Politics
- Budapest Times
Hidvéghi: Referendum papers are disappearing from mailboxes
Balazs Hidvéghi, the parliamentary state secretary of the Prime Minister's Cabinet Office, told a press briefing that referendum papers on the question of Ukraine's accession to the EU 'are not reaching their recipients', as its increasingly evident that posted Voks 2025 papers are disappearing from mailboxes. 'Activists are taking the delivered ballots from mailboxes,' Hidvéghi said, adding that 'political forces at home and abroad' were trying to 'prevent Hungarians from freely expressing their opinions'. He referred to an opposition 'fake referendum' on Ukraine's EU accession, suggesting that 58 percent backed Ukraine joining the EU. The Ukrainian president then 'referred to this opposition 'vote' and mentioned 60-70 percent support,' he added. The Fidesz politician said the government was adamant that all Hungarians had 'the right to express their opinions on this matter'. He said 500,000 papers have been returned so far, which he called 'gratifying', noting that the Voks 2025 papers must be returned by June 20. Hidvéghi referred to 'thousands of complaints' regarding missing papers, adding that these are being investigated, while the government is weighing the option of allowing voting online.
Budapest Times
12-05-2025
- Business
- Budapest Times
If Brussels bans Russian energy imports, Hungarian families will pay twice as much for gas and electricity, PM says
Prime Minister Viktor Orbán said in an interview with public radio on Friday that if Brussels succeeds in banning Russian energy imports, 'Hungarian families will soon be paying twice as much for gas and electricity'. The prime minister said the government had gone to great efforts to make sure Hungarian families pay among the cheapest energy prices in Europe, notwithstanding the cost of sanctions against Russian energy. Heating a typical Hungarian house costs around 260,000-280,000 forints as against 480,000 forints in Slovakia and up to 900,000 in Poland, he said. Hungary, he added, had bought cheap energy from Russia, but a ban would mean paying 600-800 billion forints more for energy purchased from abroad. PM Orbán said Hungary and he personally faced a serious fight in Brussels to prevent Hungarian households from paying twice as much for their bills. Saying he needed 'strength' for this fight, he called on Hungarians to help the government protect low utility bills and participate in the Voks 2025 vote.
Russia Today
06-05-2025
- Politics
- Russia Today
Zelensky wants Ukraine-friendly government in Budapest
Ukraine's Vladimir Zelensky would like to see a pro-Kiev government in Budapest that will approve his country's accession to the EU, Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban has said. He has vowed to ensure that Hungarians have their say without external pressure. Ukraine formally applied to join the bloc in February 2022, following the escalation of hostilities with Russia. Membership requires the unanimous approval of all current EU member states. In a post on X on Monday, Orban's spokesperson, Zoltan Kovacs, quoted the Hungarian leader as saying during a parliamentary session that 'Zelensky wants a Ukraine-friendly government [installed] in Hungary.' Orban further suggested that the Ukrainian leader had reached an agreement with Brussels on Kiev's accelerated EU accession, and now expects Hungary to rubber-stamp it. Orban stressed that 'there will never be a situation where Kiev or Brussels dictates how Hungarians exercise their rightful sovereignty,' and repeated his arguments that Ukraine's accession would be ruinous for Hungary's economy. He urged Hungarians to take part in Voks 2025, which is a consultative vote featuring a single question: 'Do you support Ukraine's European Union membership?' Addressing lawmakers in parliament, Orban also accused the opposition Democratic Coalition, whom he branded the 'agents of Brussels,' of seeking to 'remove Hungary's national government, bring Ukraine into the EU, drag Hungary into the war [and] unleash migrants on us.' Last Friday, the Hungarian prime minister lambasted Brussels' plans to admit Ukraine into the bloc by 2030 – a target recently referenced by European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen. Zelensky responded by citing domestic polling in Hungary and claiming that '70% support Ukraine joining the EU. That means people in Hungary are with us.' However, the poll conducted by the opposition Tisza Party to which Zelensky referred actually indicated only 58% support, while an earlier survey produced a figure even lower, at 47%. In a post on X, Orban emphasized that 'there is no Ukrainian EU accession without Hungary,' promising that 'every Hungarian will have their say on this. Whether you like it or not.' The Hungarian government has long criticized the EU's policies on the Ukraine conflict, including weapons deliveries to Kiev and sanctions against Moscow.
