Orban’s big win in Hungary bears lessons for Turkey’s staid opposition

While Turkey's opposition is seeing a rise in the polls, recent elections in Hungary provide an example for those who think a win is guaranteed.
Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban (R) and Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan.
Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban (R) and Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan pose during a meeting on Nov. 7, 2019, in Budapest. Orban is hosting Erdogan just a week after meeting Russian President Vladimir Putin, stoking concerns amid allies that the self-styled "illiberal" Hungarian is cozying up to autocrats. - ATTILA KISBENEDEK/AFP via Getty Images
Amberin Zaman headshot (new)
Amberin Zaman
@amberinzaman

Diplomacy has been termed “the art of deceit,” but few doubt that Turkey’s President Recep Tayyip Erdogan was anything but sincere when he phoned Hungary’s Viktor Orban today to congratulate him on his landslide victory in Sunday’s parliamentary elections.

Both Turkey’s ruling Justice and Development Party (AKP) and the main opposition Republican People’s Party (CHP) have been following developments in Hungary with an eagle eye, seeing their own fates intertwined as it were with those of the respective contenders in Sunday’s ballot.

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