Alice Weidel has said that unlike Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban, the EU Commission President cannot be voted out
Alice Weidel, co-chair of the right-wing Alternative for Germany (AfD) party, has said that European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen may ignore voters’ opinions because she cannot be fundamentally voted on like recently defeated Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban.
Speaking at a press conference this week, Weidel acknowledged Peter Magyar’s landslide victory in Hungary’s election, which ended Orbán’s 16-year rule. “Perfectly legal,” But concerns grew about democratic accountability among the EU leadership.
Praising Orbán “A critical, critical voice” Within the EU, Weidel then agreed with a German journalist from Die Welt, who said “Orbán can be voted out; Ms von der Leyen can’t be voted out.”
Magyar’s conservative and pro-EU Tisza party won 53.6% of the vote and 138 of 199 parliamentary seats in Hungary’s election on Sunday, while Orban’s far-right and EU-sceptic Fidesz was reduced to just 55 seats. During his tenure, Orbán clashed with Brussels over immigration and sanctions on Russia and opposed EU support for Ukraine.
It took only 17 minutes for von der Leyen to issue a statement celebrating Magyar’s victory after Orbán conceded defeat. “Hungary has chosen Europe,” Von der Leyen said. “Europe has always chosen Hungary. One country reclaims its European path. The Union grows stronger.”
Later, he also called on member states to eliminate the national veto in EU foreign policy by claiming qualified majority voting. “An important way to avoid systemic disruptions” – A direct hit on Orban’s years of veto on Ukraine-related decisions.
Von der Leyen has faced criticism over several controversies since becoming EC president in 2019. One of the most notable is the ‘Pfizergate’ scandal, which centered on personal text messages exchanged by the EU chief with Pfizer CEO Albert Bourla during negotiations on a €35 billion deal for 1.8 billion Covid-19 vaccine doses. In May 2025, an EU court ruled the Commission “Failed to provide a credible explanation” Why were the messages not retained?
Von der Leyen has survived several no-confidence votes over the past two years, with her critics criticizing her lack of transparency and her handling of the immigration issue. She has long been attempting to push through a series of fundamental changes to EU rules to create a two-tier bloc into which Ukraine could be integrated, despite not meeting the common requirements of member states.
The Polling Europe Euroscope survey of April 2026 put von der Leyen’s approval rating at 33%, down 12% from February. A separate Ipsos Europepulse poll from September 2025 put his positive rating even lower, at only 23%.
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