Method: We organized the 78 points from the sympathizers' list into 10 thematic groups. For each group, we provide a brief summary first, followed by detailed analysis with sources. We do not dispute that the given measure exists — we examine what the list omits.
Sources: KSH, Eurostat, OECD, EU Commission, Transparency International, OLAF, MNB, ÁKK, as well as Telex, G7, Átlátszó, HVG, and Direkt36 investigative materials.
The 78 points of Fidesz sympathizers — the original list
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The list below contains the 78 points circulating on social media in their original form. The fact-check appears below the list, organized thematically.
- Created one million new jobs
- Every poverty indicator improved; child poverty declined at a level remarkable in Europe
- Crime rates significantly decreased compared to 2010
- The country's gold reserves increased many times over (3.1 → 110 tonnes)
- The country's foreign currency reserves reached historic highs
- GDP-relative public debt is lower than in 2010 and lower than the EU average
- Hungary reclaimed its energy sector
- Utilities became the cheapest in the EU relative to wages
- The proportion of utility arrears significantly decreased
- Heating homes causes problems for fewer citizens
- State assets nearly tripled
- Textbooks are free through secondary and high school
- Free child meal provision funding significantly increased
- Mothers with three children are exempt from personal income tax for life
- Mothers under 40 with two children are exempt from personal income tax
- All mothers are exempt from personal income tax under age 30
- All young people are exempt from personal income tax under age 25
- Eliminated the informal payment system in healthcare
- Significantly raised doctors' salaries
- Replaced the ambulance and emergency helicopter fleet
- Corporate tax at record low: 9%
- Introduced family tax allowance, then doubled it
- Built a new National Football Stadium
- Introduced extended GYED benefit
- Introduced Child Home Care Allowance
- Paid pension bonuses multiple times
- Launched significant childcare facility development program
- Home renovation support for families
- Car purchase program for large families
- Launched Babaváró loan
- Introduced CSOK housing support
- Introduced support for first-time married couples
- Tourism repeatedly broke records
- Consolidated indebted municipalities
- Doubled foster parent support
- Real wages increased in 14 out of 16 years; convergence with the EU is significant by European standards
- EU development level increased from 64% to 78%
- Repurchased gas storage facilities
- Airport returned to Hungarian ownership
- Fertility rate improved from last place to top performers
- Nearly 700 km of motorways and express highways built
- Built a new National Athletics Stadium
- Built a new National Swimming Complex
- Introduced NEAK healthcare system
- Most hospitals, clinics, and ambulance stations renovated
- Rural development program boosted the countryside
- Modern Cities program provided funding to cities
- Introduced county and country rail passes
- Repurchased the Seuso treasures
- Introduced Otthon Start program
- Introduced Széchenyi card
- Introduced Erzsébet camps
- Defense industry developed under Zrínyi 2026 program
- Paid off the IMF loan
- South Stream pipeline completed
- Solar power generation grew enormously
- Hungary repurchased MOL shares
- Hungary purchased gas field
- Hungary acquired Serbian NIS energy company
- Introduced grandparent GYED benefit
- Rebuilt Kolontár and Devecser
- Várnegyed urban quarter being renewed through Hauszmann plan
- City Park project represents significant development
- Replaced benefit-based support with work-based support
- Six-month weapon bonus for law enforcement workers
- Teacher salaries significantly increased
- GYES extended from two years to three years
- GYED became car-independent benefit
- Childbirth assistance became tax-exempt
- Introduced Women at 40 early retirement
- Built border fence
- Utility connection became free
- Inheritance between siblings became duty-free
- 1.2 million more cars on the roads
- Driving test fee waived for mothers and students
- Increased support for infertility treatments
- Increased support for children with severe diabetes
- Increased support for children with SMA
1. Job creation and employment
Mantra points: 1, 64
One million new jobs — public work programs, emigration, median wage
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The one million new jobs is Fidesz's most famous slogan. Employment did indeed grow, but a significant portion comes from public work programs where workers earn a fraction of the minimum wage. Genuine, market-based job growth is considerably smaller, and skilled workers have emigrated in large numbers.
Detailed analysis
- The numbers: In 2010, approximately 3.87 million were employed; by 2024, this had grown to around 4.70 million. This is ~830 thousand jobs, not one million — and public work program participants accounted for 200–300 thousand at peak times.
- The public work trap: Public work wages are approximately 70% of minimum wage with limited social insurance benefits. This is not genuine labor market integration but a statistical relabeling: poverty simply shifted from unemployment to public work employment.
- Labor emigration: Estimates suggest 500,000 – 800,000 Hungarians work abroad (KSH, Eurostat). They do not appear in unemployment or employment statistics — both figures are distorted.
- Median wage in EU context: Hungary's median income is ~EUR 980/month (2024), while the EU average is ~EUR 2,100. Among V4 countries, we rank last — Czech Republic: EUR 1,538, Poland: EUR 1,189, Slovakia: EUR 1,185.
- Work instead of welfare: What actually occurred was dismantling of the social safety net. Public work does not lift people out of poverty — transition rates to regular labor market employment remain below 10%.
2. Poverty and child poverty
Mantra point: 2
Improving indicators — but for whom and compared to what?
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Poverty indicators have indeed improved — but Hungary remains in the EU's lower third. The improvement largely stems from changes in the forint value of poverty thresholds rather than actual living standard improvements. The situation of Roma children and rural households has barely changed.
Detailed analysis
- Eurostat data (2024): In Hungary, approximately 20% of children face poverty or social exclusion risk (EU average: 24.2%). The figure shows an improving trend.
- Relative threshold: The poverty threshold is relative — with the forint depreciating 60% against the euro, the threshold's real value also decreased. Improvement measured in forints does not automatically mean better living standards.
- Regional inequality: Budapest and Western Hungary have EU-conforming indicators, while Szabolcs-Szatmár-Bereg, Borsod, and Baranya counties remain above 30–40% child poverty.
- Food inflation: In 2022–2023, Hungary had the EU's highest food inflation (40%+), disproportionately affecting the poorest.
- Roma poverty: According to the EU Fundamental Rights Agency (FRA), 80% of Roma households live below the poverty threshold — this has not materially changed over 16 years.
3. Economic indicators: gold, currency, public debt
Mantra points: 4, 5, 6, 11, 54
Gold reserves increased — but forint value collapsed
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Gold reserves did increase (3.1 → 110 tonnes) — but simultaneously the forint weakened by 60%, the central bank's net assets deteriorated, and public debt multiplied in absolute terms. The tripling of state assets is largely a consequence of forint devaluation and rising market prices.
Detailed analysis
- Gold reserves: From 3.1 to 110 tonnes — fact. But: the Fidesz government itself kept it at 3.1 tonnes before 2018. Purchases began in 2018. Gold value appreciation is a global trend, not a government achievement.
- Forint depreciation: 2010: ~270 HUF/EUR → 2026: ~384 HUF/EUR. This is approximately a 42% decline. Growth measured in forints carries this distortion.
- Central bank losses: The National Bank accumulated losses of several trillion forints in 2022–2023 — partly due to high interest rate environment and inflation management costs.
- Public debt: As a percentage of GDP, it decreased (82% → ~72%), but in absolute terms it grew from ~15,000 billion HUF → ~55,000 billion HUF. The GDP-relative decrease does not come from savings but from nominal GDP inflation. In everyday terms: imagine in 2010 you earned 1 million forints and owed 820 thousand — today you earn 3 million but owe 2.1 million. Smaller as a percentage, but three times more in forints. Debt did not decrease — inflation and forint weakness merely inflated the GDP around it.
- IMF loan: In 2013, it was replaced (not repaid) with more expensive market bond issuance. It was a political gesture, not economic necessity.
4. Utility price reductions and energy policy
Mantra points: 7–10, 38, 55–59, 72
Cheap utilities — but who pays the difference?
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Utility price controls do produce low consumer prices — but taxpayers cover the difference. The annual budget impact is 800–1,000 billion forints. This is not a free lunch: the money is missing from healthcare, education, and infrastructure. Russia energy dependency has not decreased but increased.
Detailed analysis
- Budget cost: In 2023, 2.7% of GDP went directly to energy support. The budget deficit reached 6.7% (partly due to this). This equals approximately Hungary's entire healthcare deficit.
- Covered by taxes: The 27% VAT (EU record), high excise taxes, and sector-specific levies all fund utility price controls. There is no free energy — households pay at the grocery store, gas pump, and on tax forms.
- Russian gas dependency: The South Stream (TurkStream) deepened this dependency. In 2024, approximately ~65% of Hungary's gas imports are Russian in origin. A security risk, not an achievement.
- Solar energy: It genuinely grew — but due to EU and market trends, not specific government policy. Grid infrastructure did not keep pace with capacity expansion.
- MOL, NIS, gas field: Strategic purchases that are not inherently negative — but their financing and decision-making lack transparency.
5. Family support and demography
Mantra points: 14–17, 22, 24–25, 27, 29–32, 35, 40, 50, 60, 67–69, 76–78
5% of GDP on family support — yet birth rates still declining
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Hungary spends approximately 5% of GDP on family support — exceptional by OECD standards. Programs exist and many benefit from them. BUT: the fertility rate fell to 1.39 in 2024 (2023: 1.51), far from the target of 2.1. Support primarily reaches the middle and upper-middle classes; the poorest barely benefit. CSOK and Babaváró loans inflated real estate prices.
Detailed analysis
- Fertility rate (TFR): 2011: 1.23 (low point) → 2021: 1.59 → 2024: 1.39 (decline). Research suggests earlier increases reflected not more children, but delayed births being brought forward (timing effect, not quantum effect). Simply put: couples who would have children anyway accelerated their decisions due to benefits — but no more children were ultimately born. In statistics this appears as temporary growth, then declines as the "catching up" runs out. This is precisely what happened after 2021.
- Income tax exemptions (14–17): These are four separate list items but represent a single program's gradual expansion. Only benefit those working and paying taxes. The poorest, earning little, benefit not at all.
- CSOK and real estate prices: Housing support programs since 2020 inflated property prices by 40–60%. Those purchasing without support faced worse conditions. Sellers price in the CSOK amount.
- Babaváró loan: Interest-free, but still a loan — meaning debt. The amount (10 million HUF) is a fraction of today's housing prices.
- Childcare: Expansion is real, but facility numbers remain low by EU standards. Service availability, especially rural, remains critical.
- Sick children (77–78): Covering the SMA drug and expanding diabetes support are positive steps. However: global availability of treatments and strong civil pressure (parent fundraising, media campaigns) made these decisions necessary and possible — overall healthcare spending remains below EU average.
6. Healthcare
Mantra points: 18–20, 44–45, 77–78
Informal payments eliminated — but doctors left
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Eliminating informal payments and replacing the ambulance fleet are real steps. Doctor salary increases did occur. However: Hungarian doctors still earn a fraction of Western European wages, emigration has not stopped, and healthcare spending is 6.7% of GDP — the EU average is 9.9%.
Detailed analysis
- Doctor salaries: In 2023, approximately ~EUR 1,800/month gross. Germany: EUR 5,400–6,700. Austria: EUR 3,400–9,000. Norway: EUR 14,400. Salary increases are important but the gap is enormous.
- Doctor emigration: Continuous since 2005. Research shows salaries are only part of it — working conditions, institutional culture, and career prospects also drive migration. Thousands of Hungarian doctors work in the EU.
- Informal payments: Legal prohibition occurred in 2021, but informal gratuities persist, especially in rural areas.
- GDP-relative spending: 6.7% vs EU 9.9% (2022). This represents an annual ~2,000–3,000 billion HUF deficit compared to needs.
- Hospital renovations: Partial renovations occurred, but most EU-funded development projects remain frozen due to corruption concerns. Infrastructure remains among Europe's worst.
- NEAK: The new financing system did not resolve structural underfunding.
7. Education
Mantra points: 12–13, 52, 66
Free textbooks — but declining PISA and teacher shortage
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Free textbooks and meals are socially positive. Teacher salaries indeed rose in 2024–2025. However: Hungarian PISA results declined, teacher shortages are critical, and the education system has become one of the OECD's most selective.
Detailed analysis
- Teacher salaries: 2024: +34.7%, 2025: +21.2% — significant raises, but between 2010–2022 Hungarian teacher wages were among the OECD's lowest. Current increases partially address the backlog.
- PISA 2022: Among disadvantaged students, only 12.1% achieved basic skills (EU average: 16.3%). The school system is more selective than the OECD average — social background more strongly determines outcomes than almost anywhere in Europe.
- Teacher shortage: Thousands of unfilled positions, especially in mathematics, physics, and foreign languages.
- Segregation: Growing share of church schools increased Roma student segregation — the EU Commission objected.
- Textbook market: Providing free textbooks is positive, but nationalization reduced content diversity.
8. Taxation and economic policy
Mantra points: 21, 36–37, 51, 74
9% corporate tax — but 27% VAT and regressive system
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The 9% corporate tax is indeed record-low — but actual tax burden exceeds the EU average because lost revenue is replaced by VAT (27%, EU record), excise taxes, and sector-specific levies. Real wages grew but absolute levels are 45% of the EU average.
Detailed analysis
- 9% corporate tax: Yes, but: sector-specific levies, advertising tax, transaction fee, NETA — together companies pay more than many higher-rate countries.
- 27% VAT: The EU's highest standard rate. This is regressive: disproportionately affects the poor, who spend higher income proportions on consumption.
- Real wage: Grew in 14 of 16 years — true. But in 2023 it fell –15% in a single year due to inflation. Cumulative growth is real, but absolute level (EUR 980 median) is half the EU average.
- GDP per capita (PPP) 78%: Purchasing power convergence partly reflects Hungary's specific price level (cheaper services), not necessarily real living standards improvement.
- 1.2 million more cars: This is not an achievement but a symptom of neglected public transportation. With no alternative, people buy cars — on credit. Hungary's average vehicle age is 16.2 years (ACEA, 2024) — the EU average is 12.5 years. Half the cars are over 16 years old. This is not a young, modern fleet but a forced, aging vehicle park.
9. Infrastructure, sports, and major projects
Mantra points: 23, 41–43, 46–48, 53, 62–63, 71
Stadiums and motorways — but for whom and at what cost?
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Stadium construction and motorway development are facts — but proportions reveal priorities. Between 2010–2020, 600+ billion forints went to stadiums while hospitals received a fraction. 25% of motorways lack even 50% utilization. County rail passes are positive but do not compensate for decades of rail decline.
Detailed analysis
- Stadiums: 2010–2020: ~EUR 835 million on football stadiums. Felcsút stadium: 3,865 seats, ~EUR 10 million, in a 2,000-person village. Athletics stadium (2023 World Championships): ~200 billion HUF. Mostly public funding through the TAO system.
- Motorways: ~700 km built, but EDJNet (2024) reports ~EUR 1 billion spent on barely-used highways. Roads 52% need complete renovation.
- Rural Development / Modern Cities: Funding allocation lacks transparency, overrepresents Fidesz municipalities. Distribution ties to political loyalty.
- City Park project: Urban park redevelopment involved park area reduction. The original referendum result was ignored.
- Border fence: ~300 billion HUF. Illegal border crossings would have declined anyway due to closed Balkan routes. The EU did not fund it.
- Railways: County rail passes (2024) genuinely made transit cheap — positive. But rail infrastructure is catastrophic: speed restrictions, delays, station closures.
10. What the list omits
Mantra point: ∅
Corruption, rule of law, EU funding — the list's most glaring omission
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The 78-point list mentions corruption, EU funding freezes, rule of law proceedings, press freedom decline, or democratic erosion nowhere. Without these, the list is propaganda, not fact-checking.
Detailed analysis
- EU funding freeze: ~EUR 19 billion (approximately 22% of the 2021–2027 budget) frozen over rule of law concerns. Approximately EUR 1 billion permanently lost in 2024.
- Transparency International: In 2025, Hungary ranks last in the EU (tied with Bulgaria): 40 points — Hungary's worst-ever score.
- OLAF investigations: EUR 75 million in SME innovation fraud (112 projects, 54 defendants). Rural development tender fraud. Horizon Europe irregularities.
- Press freedom: RSF index: EU's lower third. KESMA media foundation concentrates 500+ outlets into a single government-friendly holding.
- Justice: 7 of 8 EU rule of law recommendations: no progress (2024 assessment).
- Oligarchs: Lőrinc Mészáros, István Tiborcz, and other government-linked entrepreneurs' wealth growth: public procurement system beneficiaries.
Three rhetorical tricks of the 78-point list
- Accumulation: Many points, but many say the same thing differently. Points 14–17 are all income tax exemptions, as is point 22 — this is not 5 achievements but 1 program's gradual expansion. Similarly: points 30–32 (Babaváró, CSOK, first-time married support) are variations of a single housing strategy.
- Context-free listing: Gold reserves increased — but the forint collapsed. Utilities are cheap — but we pay in taxes. Real wages rose — but we earn half the EU average. Each claim may be true in isolation but is misleading without context.
- The omission technique: What the list ignores is equally important. No mention of corruption, frozen EU funding, doctor emigration, declining PISA, democratic backsliding, or Russia dependency.
Conclusion
The 78-point achievements list does not consist of lies — but of one-sided truths. Most measures genuinely exist. But a government's performance is not determined by how many programs it launched but by what kind of country they ultimately produced.
After 16 years, the result is: the EU's most corrupt member state, with billions frozen, doctors and teachers emigrated, declining PISA results, workers earning half the EU average, and paying Europe's highest VAT to fund utility caps.
The real question is not whether stadiums and motorways were built. But: in whose interest, at what cost, and what was not built instead.