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By Ellie Cook
Senior Defense Reporter
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Donald Trump Jr. has said that Hungary's far-right Prime Minister Viktor Orbán is Europe's only leader with "a direct line" to the White House as Hungarians head to the polls on Sunday.
"One leader in Europe has a direct line to the White House, I hope you will support Viktor Orbán!" the president's eldest son said in a post on social media, published as votes were cast across the country.
Despite overt support from senior figures in President Donald Trump's inner circle and the president himself, Orbán is facing his most serious political challenge in years as votes are cast in Sunday's parliamentary elections.
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Orbán is staring down former loyalist-turned-adversary, Péter Magyar, the leader of the conservative but pro-European Tisza party, which has enjoyed a swell of popularity that could unseat Orbán—the European Union's longest-serving leader—from his 16-year stint as Hungarian prime minister.
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Orbán's self-declared "illiberal democracy," a term that has become shorthand for a democratic state with fragile liberal principles like weakened independent media and courts, has long been a model for Trump's own Make America Great Again (MAGA) program.
MAGA's chief architect, Steve Bannon—who has remained a prominent right-wing voice after falling out of favor with Trump in 2017—previously branded Orbán the "Trump before Trump." The U.S. president himself said on Friday that he would use the U.S.' "full economic might" to boost Hungary under Orbán.
"To our friends in Hungary, we hope you will vote for independent thinking and for someone who stands for Hungary First," Trump Jr. said. "We hope you will vote for my father’s friend and ally."
Several of the world's right-wing leaders, including Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu had thrown their weight behind Orbán's campaign, with the result closely watched by politicians and strategists who have based years of activism on Orbán's example.
The Trump administration has painted Hungary as a lone beacon of traditional, Christian, anti-"woke" values on a continent that broadly attracted the U.S. government's disdain.
The White House has accused Europe of risking "civilizational erasure" and explicitly supported right-wing candidates and parties on the continent.
The administration's 2025 National Security Strategy, a key document outlining the government's position on foreign policy, claimed Europe was on the cusp of losing its "national identities" as a result of immigration policies and the "censorship of free speech."
Several European leaders hit back at the document when it was published in late November, including Germany's chancellor, Friedrich Merz, who described parts of the policy paper as "unacceptable."
Much of Europe has also been jarred by the Trump administration's threatened takeover of Greenland, which is part of American ally Denmark, and the White House insisting Europe needs to urgently boost defense spending and rely less on the U.S. military.
Vice President JD Vance visited Budapest earlier this week in a show of support for Orbán, saying he was committed to helping the Hungarian leader win.
Secretary of State Marco Rubio, during his own visit to the Hungarian capital in February, proclaimed to Orbán: "Trump is deeply committed to your success."
Vance also claimed "bureaucrats in Brussels have tried to destroy the economy of Hungary," apparently referring to the European Union's executive arm, the European Commission, which drafts up and enacts laws. Several EU spokespeople said the bloc was making its concerns about Vance's remarks known to the U.S.
EU leaders have cut off billions of euros in funding for Budapest and widely criticized Orbán for his policies on the country's courts, LGBTQ+ rights and for vetoing funds for Ukraine.
Orbán's government has maintained close ties with Russia despite Moscow's 2022 full-scale invasion of Ukraine.
Audio recordings leaked earlier this month appeared to capture Hungary's foreign minister offering to send Russian officials documents relating to Ukraine's bid to join the EU. Several members of the European Parliament have also called on the European Commission to investigate allegations of Russian interference in Sunday's elections.
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