Thousands of people are set to gather in Budapest to demand the resignation of a senior Hungarian politician, for making a racist remark against Roma people earlier this month.
János Lázár told attendees at a political forum that migration was not the solution to the country’s labour shortage. “Since there are no migrants, and someone has to clean the bathrooms on the InterCity trains,” Lázár said Roma people would do the job, using an offensive slur in his speech.
The remarks, captured on video, quickly spread online and triggered a widespread backlash. Hungarian Roma organisations, NGOs and opposition politicians demanded that Lázár, a high-ranking ally of the rightwing populist prime minister, Viktor Orbán, apologise and resign. “He has crossed all boundaries,” said Péter Magyar, the leader of the largest opposition party, Tisza.
The scandal comes 10 weeks before an election that could cement or break the rule of Orbán’s Fidesz party, which came to power for the second time in 2010.
“Fidesz is over, its mandate has expired permanently,” said Ádám Lakatos, an 18-year-old Roma activist and the organiser of Saturday’s protest.
Independent polls show a stable lead for Tisza – a centre-right party founded in 2020 – ahead of Fidesz. Outrage over Lázár’s racist remarks could further alienate undecided voters from the governing party.
Lázár has apologised, but refused to resign, and has recently appeared alongside Orbán at a party event. He didn’t respond to the Guardian’s request for comment.
Roma communities, who have long been scapegoated by the government, experience worse living conditions, higher levels of poverty, and face lower life expectancy than the rest of the Hungarian population.
“During its 16 years of rule, Fidesz has not created jobs, or supported [Roma] families,” said Szandi Minzári, a 37-year-old international policy expert with Roma heritage. Roma people are overrepresented in low-paying public jobs, which she said can be exploited by local politicians. Independent organisations have raised concerns that these public work programs are being leveraged by officials for electoral gain.
“Lázár’s resignation would be a positive move for Fidesz, helping recover some Roma support, and setting an example” said Bernadett Orbán (no relation to the PM), a 33-year-old activist. “But I don’t think he will resign.”
Orbán, and her partner, Tamás Könyves, are not Roma, but will attend the protest on Saturday. “I feel it is my duty to speak up and stand up for the Roma community,” said Könyves, 51, who will give a speech at the event.
Fidesz has faced increasing public anger in recent years. In 2024, the party president, Katalin Novák, resigned after mass demonstrations erupted over a decision to pardon a man convicted for covering up child sexual abuse claims at a state-run orphanage.
There were also protests in 2025 after news of systemic abuse at a juvenile correctional centre. The opposition demanded resignations in Orbán’s government over inaction.
“Fidesz’s actions have become unacceptable for Hungarians, for Europe and for the entire world,” said Lakatos, who grew up in state care.
Both of the main parties have increased their voting base in the past year, but as Tibor Závecz from Závecz Research Institute highlights, this growth primarily drew support from smaller parties, not the large swathe of undecided voters.
“And it seems like Fidesz is taking the voters from the far right,” Závecz said. While anti-Roma speeches might gain the trust of these voters, they could alienate up to half a million hesitant voters.
Balázs Böcskei, a political scientist and research director at the Idea Institute,says it is surprising that Fidesz’s campaign did not help the party gain much ground. He attributes this partly to a strong opposition, and partly to a series of “public policy failures” in “every sphere that is important to people today” he said, citing the economy, and welfare services.
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