Many liberals are in despair over Donald Trump's authoritarian tendencies, convinced democracy is doomed. But the recent election in Hungary offers a powerful counterexample: Viktor Orban, a Trump-style strongman, was defeated in a landslide and stepped down. The victory of Peter Magyar provides a roadmap for beating authoritarians—without alienating their voters.
Orban, who ruled Hungary for 15 years, had crushed independent media, taken over universities, and cracked down on immigration—moves Trump has echoed. Yet Magyar won by relentlessly hammering Orban's corruption, not by demonizing his supporters. “Do not try to defeat them; do not look down on them,” Magyar told his jubilant crowd. “Listen to them and talk to them. Tell them that this country belongs to them, too.”
This approach stands in stark contrast to the Democratic habit of labeling Trump voters as fascists or racists. In October 2024, a masked protester called Erie County GOP chair Tom Eddy a fascist. When Eddy asked if the protester knew what the word meant, the reply was: “Don’t need to know. I know who you are.” Trump went on to win Pennsylvania by his largest margin since 1988. Name-calling didn't help then, and it won't help now.
Trump's own record of corruption is undeniable. He accepted a $400 million plane from Qatar, invested in Oracle while the White House helped it buy TikTok, and bought stock in Paramount, Netflix, and Warner Brothers as they competed for acquisitions. Jared Kushner, his son-in-law, reaped billions from Middle East governments while serving as a diplomatic envoy. Democrats like Sens. Jon Ossoff and Mark Warner have rightly spotlighted these deals.
But the crusade against corruption fails when it indicts every Trump voter as complicit. Magyar understood this: he made clear his fight was with Orban, not with the millions who backed him. That's the unifying rhetoric Democrats need. It's fine to denounce Trump's fascist-style assaults on free speech and the rule of law, but calling his followers fascists is a losing strategy.
Similarly, the charge of racism backfires. Trump has made vile remarks about Mexicans and Haitians, yet he gained ground with Hispanic and African American voters in 2024. Were all those people racist? The label isn't just bad reasoning—it's bad politics. As California Governor Gavin Newsom has learned, trolling opponents doesn't win converts.
Magyar's message of shared destiny offers a way forward. “What connects us will be stronger than what divides us,” he said in his first speech as prime minister. “Family, friends, and communities will be able to speak to each other again.” That's the antidote to the division authoritarians like Trump thrive on. We cannot beat him by playing his game.
The lesson from Hungary is clear: authoritarians can be defeated, but only by welcoming everyone into the fold—including those who voted for them. That requires wisdom and courage, but it's the only path to preserving democracy. As Magyar showed, the blueprint exists. The question is whether Democrats will follow it.
