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The Election Night event, co-hosted by the Center for Fundamental Rights last night, gathered experts and officials to examine the wider implications of the U.S. election.
The evening opened with remarks from Zoltán Szalai, Director General of MCC, who highlighted the election's global stakes, stressing its impact on peace in both Europe and the Middle East. Miklós Szánthó, Director General of the Center for Fundamental Rights, underscored the election’s significance, describing it as a choice between two distinct paths for America's future. He noted that the final decision might hinge on the support of blue-collar workers and Latino communities in critical battleground states.
The first panel addressed campaign dynamics, featuring Zoltán Koskovics, Geopolitical Analyst at the Center for Fundamental Rights; Istvan Stumpf, member of the Prime Minister's Strategic Advisory Board; and Ádám Imre Szűcs, Research Fellow at the Center for Diplomacy. Szűcs emphasized the importance of mobilizing voters in Wisconsin, Michigan, and Pennsylvania, key states known as the “Blue Wall.”
The second panel shifted focus to U.S. foreign policy, with Peter Boghossian, MCC’s Visiting Fellow; István Kovács, Strategic Director at the Center for Fundamental Rights; and Gladden Pappin, President of the Hungarian Institute of International Affairs. Kovács highlighted the influence of Trump’s trade policies with China, continued under the Biden administration to protect American jobs. Boghossian spoke on Trump’s stance on NATO, noting it has encouraged Europe to strengthen its own defense capabilities. Pappin closed by emphasizing the need for balanced international engagement to navigate today’s complex geopolitical environment.
The Election Night also featured several live interviews from reporters on the ground in the United States.
