Hungary’s voters shunned Orbán – but it may be too early to celebrate end of Europe’s far right

Leaders of Poland and Germany hail Péter Magyar’s majority as a turning of the tide – but analysts say there were other reasons for defeat of prime minister

For Poland’s Donald Tusk, the crushing defeat of Hungary’s illiberal prime minister, Viktor Orbán, after 16 years in office was evidence that the world was “not condemned to authoritarian and corrupt governments”.

Germany’s chancellor, Friedrich Merz, also believes the two-thirds majority secured by Orbán’s centre-right challenger, Péter Magyar, in Sunday’s elections was “a clear signal against rightwing populism” that showed “the pendulum is swinging back”.