Orban Campaign Shows Cracks as Anger Mounts Over Spying Scandal

Prime Minister Viktor Orban’s efforts to regain the upper hand in the final weeks of Hungary’s election campaign showed cracks in the face of a rising tide of opposition support and a string of fresh political scandals.

The pro-Kremlin Orban has ditched highly scripted closed-door events for open-air stump speeches in an attempt to reverse his ruling party’s flagging poll numbers before April 12 elections. That tactic has failed to deliver so far, with the premier often encountering opponents shouting slogans against his Fidesz party in town squares and an especially tense confrontation late Friday with voters in the western city of Gyor.