Vice President JD Vance and second lady Usha Vance announced they will travel to Hungary next week, ahead of Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban‘s tough reelection bid.
The Vances will visit Hungary from Tuesday to Wednesday, with the vice president set to hold bilateral meetings with Orban.
Vance will also deliver remarks “on the rich partnership between the United States and Hungary,” according to his office.
Hungary will hold elections on April 12 as Orban faces tough competition from Peter Magyar, head of the center-right Tisza party. Magyar has led Orban in polls and is campaigning on restoring Hungary’s democratic institutions.
President Donald Trump endorsed the Hungarian prime minister, one of his strongest European allies, last month in a Truth Social post.
“I was proud to ENDORSE Viktor for Re-Election in 2022, and am honored to do so again. Election Day is April 12, 2026. Hungary: GET OUT AND VOTE FOR VIKTOR ORBÁN,” he wrote.
Secretary of State Marco Rubio also visited Budapest in February and endorsed the prime minister. “The prime minister and the president have a very, very close personal relationship and working relationship, and I think it has been beneficial to our two countries,” Rubio said during his trip.
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Orban has been in power since 2010 and is hoping that a boost from Vance could lead to a fifth consecutive election victory.
Vance shocked European leaders in his first months as vice president during his speech at the Munich Security Conference in Germany, where he chastised America’s allies for not protecting religious freedom.
