Pride returns to Budapest after dictator was voted out - LGBTQ Nation

Budapest police approved the 2026 Pride parade to march in June after last year’s event was banned. Police said the notification process and in-person consultation with organizers found no grounds for prohibiting the assembly. Hungary’s previous government had passed legislation banning Pride events, and last year’s demonstration drew more than 200,000 attendees despite the ban. Budapest Pride welcomed participants from the prior demonstration and others supporting equal rights and a democratic Hungary. The approval comes as the European Union released more than €16 billion in withheld funds following continued noncompliance with EU rules and human-rights conventions. Ursula von der Leyen said reforms were driven forward quickly by Prime Minister Péter Magyar.

"“During the notification process for the 2026 Pride parade and the subsequent in-person consultation with the organizers, no grounds for prohibiting the assembly arose,” Budapest police said in a statement to AFP."

"“We warmly welcome everyone in June who took part in last year's demonstration, as well as those who continue to believe in equal rights and a democratic Hungary, and those who would like to once again celebrate the transition to democracy,” Budapest Pride said in a statement on social media."

"“We can already feel a strong wind of change across Hungary,” Ursula von der Leyen, president of the European Commission, said at a press conference announcing the release."

"“In only a few weeks, you have driven forward long overdue reforms,” she told Orbán's successor, Prime Minister Péter Magyar, at the event in the EU capital, Brussels."

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