Hungarians hail "emotional night" as Tisza party wins parliamentary elections

Residents in the Hungarian capital Budapest have described the outcome of Sunday's historic election as an "emotional night" after the country's opposition party Tisza secured a victory to bring an end to Prime Minister Viktor Orban's 16 years in power.

Led by Peter Magyar, the Tisza party was projected to win 138 of the 199 available parliament seats as the final vote tally was being counted on Sunday evening, exceeding a two-thirds majority and delivering a defeat to Orban's ruling coalition.

Addressing supporters in the center of Budapest, the 45-year-old Magyar hailed his party's "decisive victory," saying it was a win seen "from every Hungarian window" and vowed that Hungary will once again be a strong ally in the European Union (EU) and NATO.

Preliminary statistics showed that turnout reached about 77.8 percent among the roughly 8.1 million eligible voters, marking a record high.

As celebrations took place on the streets of Budapest, supporters of Magyar's Tisza party spoke of the significance of the vote.

"People have shown that they have the power," said Attila, a local resident.

"It's unbelievable," said another local named Karla.

"It's an emotional night," said Balint, another Budapest resident.

Orban conceded defeat on Sunday evening, describing the result as "painful but unambiguous" for the ruling Fidesz-KDNP alliance, while extending his congratulations to Magyar's Tisza party.

The victory for the center-right Tisza party signals the imminent end of Orban's 16 consecutive years in charge of Hungary. Orban served as prime minister from 1998 to 2002 and has remained in office since returning to power in 2010.

During the campaign, Magyar's Tisza party focused on anti-corruption and institutional reform, calling for the restoration of the rule of law and transparent governance. It also advocated repairing relations with the EU and urged Hungarians to unite in building a sovereign, civic, modern and European Hungary.

Hungarians hail "emotional night" as Tisza party wins parliamentary elections

Russian President Vladimir Putin said on Friday that Russia remains open to everyone who is interested in engaging with the country and is ready to pursue equal and mutually beneficial cooperation

Speaking at a plenary session of the 29th St. Petersburg International Economic Forum (SPIEF) in St. Petersburg, Putin said Russia is "convinced that this particular approach where partners hear one another, understand their partners' interests, and identify common solutions represents a harmonious path of development and makes it possible to respond to the serious challenges facing the modern-day world."

Russia remains "open to everyone interested in engaging with our country and is ready to pursue equal and mutually beneficial cooperation," said Putin.

He emphasized that the world can only become more equitable when economic growth is distributed more broadly, and opportunities become available to billions of people who have long remained on the periphery of the global economy.

It is of crucial importance that new centers of economic growth seek to shape their own development paths, increase their share of value creation, and build their own brands, standards, and capabilities, Putin said.

He said the global trading system is becoming less West-centric, citing the growing role of BRICS countries in world trade.

According to the Russian president, international trade is becoming more efficient through the expansion of direct supplies without unnecessary intermediaries, the development of settlements in national currencies, and the opening of new logistics routes.

Held annually since 1997, the SPIEF has grown into one of Russia's most important international economic forums.

This year's event, running from Wednesday to Saturday, has brought together about 20,000 representatives from political, business and academic circles from more than 100 countries and territories.

Putin says Russia remains open to everyone ready to pursue equal and mutually beneficial cooperation