Vice President JD Vance suggested that the European Union was interfering with the upcoming Hungarian election, while Vance himself is on a visit to Budapest aimed at boosting strongman Prime Minister Viktor Orbán’s chances of winning a tough battle for another term.
Vance said Wednesday that there’d been a “lot of conversation about foreign influence” in U.S. elections, adding that he had been accused of such by coming to Hungary to support Orbán, a nationalist and self-proclaimed proponent of “illiberal democracy.”
“That’s foreign influence. But what’s not foreign influence is when the European Union threatens billions of dollars withheld from Hungary because you guys protect your borders. That’s apparently not foreign influence,” Vance said.
“I find it darkly ironic that people are accusing me of engaging in some kind of foreign influence. All that we’re saying is that Viktor Orbán, he does a good job,” the vice president added.
Orbán is seeking his fifth consecutive term in office. Elections are set for Sunday, April 12.
The Associated Press reports most independent polls show Orbán and his party, Fidesz, running a double-digit deficit behind his main opponent, Péter Magyar, among decided voters.
Freedom House, a democracy-oriented U.S.-based nonprofit, designates Hungary as only “partly free,” citing issues with less-than-free-and-fair elections and a stifling of independent institutions.
Under Orbán, the country has also strengthened its alliance with Russia. Still, the Hungarian leader has received support from the Republican Party and President Trump has long launded Orbán. When Vance called Mr. Trump in front of a crowd of thousands in Budapest on Tuesday, the president praised the prime minister.
“I love Hungary and I love that Viktor,” Mr. Trump said through the speakerphone.
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