Peter Magyar, in his first speech as prime minister, apologised to the victims of the Orban era and called on President Tamas Sulyok to step down.

Despite the scorching heat, Kossuth Square in front of the Neorenessaince building was packed by the early afternoon with tens of thousands of people, celebrating a historic day in Hungary's modern history. May 9, which in other parts of Europe is Victory Day, is not celebrated in Hungary, which ended up losing the Second World War on the side of Nazi Germany.

At the event, billed as a national celebration marking the transition to democracy, Tisza supporters, from young to old, liberals to conservatives, waving Hungarian and EU flags, watched live the inauguration of the country's new prime minister, Magyar, on large screens, and also celebrated the end of Viktor Orban's 16-year rule, state news agency MTI reported on May 9.

After the first session of parliament under the new Tisza government ended at 3 pm, a military parade and flag-raising ceremony were held on Kossuth Square followed by live musical performances. The festivities continued in the evening with a DJ taking the stage, and the party lasted until the early hours.

The day was also marked by several symbolic actions and firsts. After more than a decade of absence, a blue EU flag was displayed on the parliament façade. The subsequent "regime-change celebration" was also an unprecedented moment in modern Hungarian political history.

Alongside the Hungarian national anthem, the European anthem and the unofficial anthem of Szeklerland, home to a large Hungarian community in Romania, were performed before Magyar took his oath

Lawmakers from the radical-right Our Homeland Movement left the chamber when a children's tambura ensemble performed the Roma anthem. The group later performed a popular folk melody that served as the campaign anthem of the Tisza Party, prompting a standing ovation and emotional reactions from several MPs.

Parliament elected the prime minister during the first session. Magyar received 140 votes in favour, 54 against and one abstention.

The 45-year-old, who scored the biggest upset in Hungary's modern political history, opened his speech with a pledge to serve Hungary, not rule it: "I will not rule Hungary; I will serve my country as long as my service is of use, to the best of my ability, and as long as the Hungarian nation demands it", a reference to Hungary's first democratically elected leader, Jozsef Antall, leader of the centre-right MDF.

Magyar emphasised accountability for past governments, criticising the Orban-Gyurcsany era for failing politically, morally, and socially, leaving Hungary "plundered, pillaged, betrayed and misled."

"It is symbolic that the two eponymous prime ministers, Viktor Orban and Ferenc Gyurcsany, are not sitting in the benches today, so that it is possible to speak openly and clearly of the legacy they are leaving us," Magyar said. For the first time, the outgoing prime minister did not attend the ceremony. The day before, Orban gave an interview to Dopeman, a controversial former rapper and media personality, criticised by commentators for his provocative style and political alignment.

One of the most striking moments of Magyar's speech came when he openly called on Sulyok, along with senior public officials and heads of state institutions, to resign, prompting loud cheers from supporters gathered on Kossuth Square.

Opening the parliamentary session, Sulyok spoke about the historic responsibility entrusted to the Tisza Party by Hungarian voters through its unprecedented mandate. He also stressed the importance of preserving the rule of law and constitutional order, in what observers saw as an indirect reference to Magyar's efforts to remove officials appointed during the Fidesz era.

Magyar struck back with candid directness and criticised the president, whose role is ceremonial, for failing to protect the rule of law at key moments, including attacks on judges, minors, and opposition parties. Sulyok had turned a blind eye when Orban called half the country "vermin to be exterminated" and when judicial and cultural authorities faced harassment, Magyar stressed.

He had "never once managed to stop unconstitutional legislation or even minimally resist legal arbitrariness," Magyar noted, and called on him to resign.

No sitting prime minister had previously addressed a head of state in such a manner during an official ceremony, wrote political analyst Gabor Torok on Facebook. Sulyok had become politically vulnerable due to perceived passivity during the Orban era, making him an easy target for the new government's accountability drive, while analysts warned that either resignation or remaining in office carried serious political risks for him.

Senior Fidesz politicians reacted sharply to the speech. Gergely Gulyas, former minister of the Prime Minister's Office, called it a personal and political attack against the president unworthy of a prime minister, while Bence Retvari described it as "a speech of revenge".

On May 10, the President's Office issued a statement saying, "The legal status of the President and the conditions of holding office are clearly regulated by the Fundamental Law", Hungary's constitution.

The statement effectively indicated that Sulyok's mandate can only be terminated through procedures defined in the Fundamental Law, the most likely scenario if Sulyok does not resign by the May 31 deadline.

Magyar also said reconciliation would be needed once the country had moved past confrontation and the pursuit of justice.

Hungary cannot move forward without confronting past injustices, he said, as he apologised to victims of abuse and social neglect, highlighting amongst others the plight of children in care homes. He specifically named Bicske, where a pardon granted to the paedophile head of a children's home led to the resignation of president Katalin Novak in February 2024, seen as the beginning of the end of the Fidesz era and the catalyst for the emergence of former Fidesz cadre Peter Magyar.

In his more than an hour-long speech, Magyar called on all Hungarians to participate in national renewal: "All Hungarians are true citizens of this country,  not just the rich, the powerful, or the politically loyal."

He stressed unity over division, pledging to restore public services, strengthen child protection, and ensure that public funds serve the nation rather than narrow interests. He also vowed to restore Hungary's credibility internationally and reclaim EU funds owed to the country.

Magyar also drew loud applause from his own faction and supporters outside Parliament ,when he announced the launch of a new state body to investigate corruption, misuse of public assets, and the diversion of state wealth to political and economic elites.

The National Asset Recovery and Protection Office would operate independently, accountable only to Parliament, and would pursue recovery of public assets both domestically and internationally. "Anyone who believes that political connections, party loyalty, personal allegiance, or old-guard protection can provide immunity… is seriously mistaken," Magyar stressed.

Political analysts noted that one of the most important election pledges of Tisza was not just to root out corruption but also to hold those close to the ruling political and economic elite accountable for any wrongdoing. In previous elections, opposition parties also ran on an anti-corruption platform, but with a stagnating economy and a rising inflationary environment, Magyar's calls resonated with rural voters as well, analysts said.

After his speech in parliament, the new 141-member Tisza faction walked out of the Neo-Renaissance building to greet the crowd and attend the military parade and the flag-raising ceremony. Magyar also addressed the crowd, saying that Parliament had "for years been a symbol of oppression, the arrogance of power and exclusion" but "is now yours. You have taken it back, and your representatives sit there once again, the representatives of all Hungarians."