A New Dawn?

Hooded crows screech in the Pavlovian night,
Unable to roost in the pyrite light
Of parliament’s glow—a postcard illusion,
Drained of power in democratic dilution.

Dusty corridors after the Chieftain’s retreat,
Aloof with the Turul in his Carmelite seat.
Centipedes stirred on St Valentine’s Day—
Tourists in bloom, their false spring prey.

The crows must circle in their sacrifice,
Insomniacs paying a sleepless price;
We slumber safely beneath their flight,
And wake each day with our dreams still bright.

Clocks went forward while minds fell back,
Harking to pasts less burdened with plaque;
The Petőfi March, the October Spring—
Why does the past so loudly ring?

Emotions plumed as people decided
Who to exalt and who be derided;
Weasel words grew ever more infective,
Broadcast in an orgy of invective:

“He keeps ants in his underpants!”
“He breeds rats where the sun don’t shine!”
“Her father brought red, red rain!”
“He trains wild boar in secret time!”

State actors plundered the comic’s gold
With tricks that highwaymen might find too bold;
The bogeyman unleashed electoral disorder,
Whispers racing across each border:

“She’s got a wild boar up her nose!”
“He strikes again his blood-red pose!”
The networks hummed with social confusion—
Echo chambers, carriages sealed in seclusion.

Sixteen years, the orange train ran,
Timetabled tight to the master’s plan;
Other tracks bent, routes diverted—
Fellow travellers quietly converted.

An upstart first across the line,
The old guard unseated—out of time.
Will normal service be resumed,
Or vengeance all that’s left consumed?

Domes and spires hold steady light,
As if their glow could guard the rite;
And what of Hoodies, starved of sleep,
Heavy-eyed in the vows they keep?

They spiral still beneath a thinning moon,
Loose feathers drifting down too soon—
The murders, haggard, fray and yawn…
Who keeps the watch, this flaming dawn?

Composition of Hungarian Parliaments

2022 – 2026                                     Seats                                   Characteristic

Fidesz                                                 116                                     Nationalist Right

Christian Democrats                      18                                     Nationalist Right              

Mi Hazank                                           6                                      Far  right nationalist

Jobbik                                                 10                                      Right wing

Democratic Coalition                     15                                      Left Liberal

Momentum                                       10                                      Liberal

Hungarian Socialists                       10                                      Socialist

Parbeszed                                          6                                       Left of centre                                  

Hungarian Greens                           5                                       Green

Independents                                   3                                        Independent

Total   199

May 2026 – 2030

Tisza Party                                         140                                      Nationalistic right

Fidesz &

Christian Democrats                       53                                     Nationalistic right

Hi Hazank                                              6                                      Far right nationalist

Other parties                                        0

Total                                                       199 

(other parties all received less than 5% of the vote and no seats in parliament)

Hungarian Parliament building.

‘Vote!- requested election winner- Péter Magyar of the Tisza party. And they did in record numbers!

‘Danger!’ from these two gentlemen- ‘Only Fidesz can stop them- said Fidesz. The electorate thought differently.

‘Enough’ said far right Mi Hazank (Our Homeland) party, who scraped into parliament with six MP’s.

‘Vote for the candidate of the left’ -The Democratic Coalition proclaimed, before running out of steam!

‘We send humans to the parliament’ said The Two Tailed Dog Party. Not even a poodle will represent them in the new parliament.

‘Let’s join forces against the war’ said Viktor Orbán, leader of Fidesz, who suffered a resounding defeat.

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Jousting with Words