László Toroczkai (born László Tóth, 10 March 1978) is a Hungarian politician, journalist, leader of the
Our Homeland Movement
Our Homeland Movement ( Hungarian: ''Mi Hazánk Mozgalom,'' MHM) is a Hungarian far-right political party founded by Ásotthalom mayor and former Jobbik Vice-President László Toroczkai and other Jobbik dissidents that left the organization aft ...
political party, and former mayor of
Ásotthalom
Ásotthalom ( hr, Zlatara) is a village in Csongrád County, in the Southern Great Plain region of southern Hungary, near the border with Serbia.
Geography
It covers an area of and has a population of 3,856 people (2017).
Politics
The local ...
. He is also a member of the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe. He is also a founding member of the
HVIM youth organization, the ''Hunnia'' national radical movement, and former Vice President of
Jobbik
The Movement for a Better Hungary ( hu, Jobbik Magyarországért Mozgalom), commonly known as Jobbik (), is a conservative political party in Hungary.
Originating with radical and nationalist roots, at its beginnings, the party described itsel ...
. Between 2002 and 2013 he served as editor-in-chief of the ''
Magyar Jelen'' newspaper.
Family
The Treaty of Trianon heavily impacted on his family. Ancestors from his mother's side were expelled from
Rimetea and
Cluj-Napoca
; hu, kincses város)
, official_name=Cluj-Napoca
, native_name=
, image_skyline=
, subdivision_type1 = County
, subdivision_name1 = Cluj County
, subdivision_type2 = Status
, subdivision_name2 = County seat
, settlement_type = City
, ...
; ancestors from his father's side were expelled from
Sombor
Sombor ( sr-Cyrl, Сомбор, ; hu, Zombor; rue, Зомбор, Zombor) is a city and the administrative center of the West Bačka District in the autonomous province of Vojvodina, Serbia. The city has a total population of 47,623 (), while i ...
and
Odžaci
Odžaci ( sr-cyrl, Оџаци, ; hu, Hódság) is a town and municipality located in the West Bačka District of the autonomous province of Vojvodina, Serbia. The town of Odžaci has a population of 8,795 people, while the population of the m ...
. As a fearful judge, one of his great-grandfathers, , had a major role in the aftermath of the failed
Hungarian Revolution of 1956
The Hungarian Revolution of 1956 (23 October – 10 November 1956; hu, 1956-os forradalom), also known as the Hungarian Uprising, was a countrywide revolution against the government of the Hungarian People's Republic (1949–1989) and the Hung ...
and was widely condemned for presiding over some of the notorious
show trials. It was he who convicted
Mária Wittner
Mária Wittner (''Gazdagh-Wittner;'' 9 June 1937 – 14 September 2022) was a Hungarian revolutionary and politician who participated in the Hungarian Revolution of 1956.
Early life
Wittner was born in Budapest on 9 June 1937. She did not kno ...
among others. Conservative right author Anna Tutsek, who was born in Cluj-Napoca, was also his relative. In the 1930s his grandfather, László Tóth, who was from
Bačka
Bačka ( sr-cyrl, Бачка, ) or Bácska () is a geographical and historical area within the Pannonian Plain bordered by the river Danube to the west and south, and by the river Tisza to the east. It is divided between Serbia and Hungar ...
, was a gendarme and a football player. Later on, during World War II, he served in the
Royal Hungarian Army
The Royal Hungarian Army ( hu, Magyar Királyi Honvédség, german: Königlich Ungarische Armee) was the name given to the land forces of the Kingdom of Hungary in the period from 1922 to 1945. Its name was inherited from the Royal Hungarian Hon ...
. He was deployed to recapture
Bačka
Bačka ( sr-cyrl, Бачка, ) or Bácska () is a geographical and historical area within the Pannonian Plain bordered by the river Danube to the west and south, and by the river Tisza to the east. It is divided between Serbia and Hungar ...
and
Northern Transylvania
Northern Transylvania ( ro, Transilvania de Nord, hu, Észak-Erdély) was the region of the Kingdom of Romania that during World War II, as a consequence of the August 1940 territorial agreement known as the Second Vienna Award, became part of ...
and then participated in fights at
the Eastern front.
László Toroczkai has 3 children. He was twice married. His second wife is from
Western Moldavia
Moldavia ( ro, Moldova), also called Western Moldavia or Romanian Moldavia, is the historic and geographical part of the former Principality of Moldavia situated in eastern and north-eastern Romania. Until its union with Wallachia in 1859, the Pr ...
, Romania. They divorced in 2017.
Political career
Born in
Szeged
Szeged ( , ; see also other alternative names) is the third largest city of Hungary, the largest city and regional centre of the Southern Great Plain and the county seat of Csongrád-Csanád county. The University of Szeged is one of the m ...
, Toroczkai studied communication at the
University of Szeged
, mottoeng = Truth. Bravery. Freedom.
, established =
, type = Public research university
, founder = Emperor Franz Joseph I
, affiliation = European University Association, Science Without Borders, Confucius Institute
, budget = US$220 m ...
. He defines himself as a national radical.
In 2004, Toroczkai was banned from Serbia after being involved in a scuffle with a group of
Serbs
The Serbs ( sr-Cyr, Срби, Srbi, ) are the most numerous South Slavic ethnic group native to the Balkans in Southeastern Europe, who share a common Serbian ancestry, culture, history and language.
The majority of Serbs live in their ...
in the town of
Palić. In 2006, the authorities of
Slovakia
Slovakia (; sk, Slovensko ), officially the Slovak Republic ( sk, Slovenská republika, links=no ), is a landlocked country in Central Europe. It is bordered by Poland to the north, Ukraine to the east, Hungary to the south, Austria to the ...
also banned him from the country for five years because of demonstrations that he organized in front of the Slovak Ministry of Internal Affairs. He became a nationally known political figure during the
2006 protests in Hungary
The 2006 protests in Hungary were a series of Political dissent, anti-government protests triggered by the release of Hungary, Hungarian Prime Minister Ferenc Gyurcsány's Ferenc Gyurcsány's speech in Balatonőszöd in May 2006, private speech ...
and especially because of his role in the siege of the headquarters of
Magyar Televízió
Magyar Televízió (''Hungarian Television'') or MTV is a nationwide public television broadcasting organization in Hungary. Headquartered in Budapest, it is the oldest television broadcaster in Hungary and today airs five channels: M1 HD, M ...
, the Hungarian
public television
Public broadcasting involves radio, television and other electronic media outlets whose primary mission is public service. Public broadcasters receive funding from diverse sources including license fees, individual contributions, public financing ...
where he led the protesting crowd in
Budapest
Budapest (, ; ) is the capital and most populous city of Hungary. It is the ninth-largest city in the European Union by population within city limits and the second-largest city on the Danube river; the city has an estimated population ...
from the
Kossuth Square
Kossuth Lajos Square ( hu, Kossuth Lajos tér), also known as Kossuth Square (), is a city square situated in the Lipótváros neighbourhood of Budapest, Hungary, on the bank of the Danube. Its most notable landmark is the Hungarian Parlia ...
to the
Liberty Square.
Mayor of Ásotthalom (2013–present)
Since 2013 he has been the mayor of
Ásotthalom
Ásotthalom ( hr, Zlatara) is a village in Csongrád County, in the Southern Great Plain region of southern Hungary, near the border with Serbia.
Geography
It covers an area of and has a population of 3,856 people (2017).
Politics
The local ...
. He was elected as mayor in a by-election with 71.5% of the vote. In the
regularly scheduled election in 2014 he was re-elected unanimously. He was re-elected with 68.42% of the vote in the
2019 local elections.
It was his idea early 2015 to have a border fence built along the southern border of
Hungary
Hungary ( hu, Magyarország ) is a landlocked country in Central Europe. Spanning of the Carpathian Basin, it is bordered by Slovakia to the north, Ukraine to the northeast, Romania to the east and southeast, Serbia to the south, Croa ...
, in order to stop illegal migration, which was later implemented as the
Hungarian border barrier
In 2015, Hungary built a border barrier on its border with Serbia and Croatia. The fence was constructed during the European migrant crisis (see timeline), with the aim to ensure border security by preventing illegal immigrants from entering, and ...
the same year by the Hungarian government. During the 2015
European migrant crisis
The 2015 European migrant crisis, also known internationally as the Syrian refugee crisis, was a period of significantly increased movement of refugees and migrants into Europe in 2015, when 1.3 million people came to the continent to request ...
, over 10,000 Syrian and Iraqi migrants passed through the village, with only a handful of them aiming to settle there.
In 2017, only two Muslims were known to choose Ásotthalom as their permanent residence.
There are no mosque-designed structures built in the village up to date and Toroczkai banned any building of mosques that year.
In addition, the local government had banned the
Muslim call to prayer,
Muslim clothing, and public displays of same-sex affection.
He endorsed policies to ban the promotion of pro-
LGBT rights
Rights affecting lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender (LGBT) people vary greatly by country or jurisdiction—encompassing everything from the legal recognition of same-sex marriage to the death penalty for homosexuality.
Notably, , ...
advertisements and
Islamic religious practices in Ásotthalom, arguing that homosexuality and Islam are threats posed to the Hungarian traditions. In April 2017, after a lawsuit challenging the ban's legitimacy had been filled, the Constitutional Court struck it down, ruling that it violated human rights law as it aimed to " directly limit the freedom of speech, conscience and religion".
In June 2018, Toroczkai discussed plans with
Afrikaner
Afrikaners () are a South African ethnic group descended from predominantly Dutch settlers first arriving at the Cape of Good Hope in the 17th and 18th centuries.Entry: Cape Colony. ''Encyclopædia Britannica Volume 4 Part 2: Brain to Cas ...
farmers to relocate to Ásotthalom.
Party leader
Between 2010 and 2014, he was a local representative of
Csongrád County
Csongrád ( ro, Ciongrad; tr, Conğrad sr, Чонград, Čongrad, archaically also ''Црноград/Crnograd'') is a town in Csongrád County in southern Hungary.
History
At the time of the Hungarian Conquest (the end of 9th century) th ...
. He is the former vice president of the
Jobbik
The Movement for a Better Hungary ( hu, Jobbik Magyarországért Mozgalom), commonly known as Jobbik (), is a conservative political party in Hungary.
Originating with radical and nationalist roots, at its beginnings, the party described itsel ...
party and led its county list during the elections of 2010 and 2014.
After the
2018 Hungarian parliamentary election
The 2018 Hungarian parliamentary election took place on 8 April 2018. This parliamentary election was the eighth since the 1990 first multi-party election and the second since the adoption of a new Constitution of Hungary which came into force on ...
, Toroczkai was a contender for Jobbik's presidency, but he lost to his opponent
Tamás Sneider, receiving 46.2% of the vote. He later told reporters he had formed a new platform and allowed party leaders time until June 23 to integrate its ideology and policies into the party's political programmes or risk a break-up of Jobbik.
He said the platform had plans to return to the original goals pursued by Jobbik, including to halt immigration, stop the emigration of the Hungarian youth to the wealthier western part of the
EU, take a tough line on Hungary's Roma minority, and to support the ethnic Hungarian minorities in neighboring states.
On 8 June 2018,
Jobbik
The Movement for a Better Hungary ( hu, Jobbik Magyarországért Mozgalom), commonly known as Jobbik (), is a conservative political party in Hungary.
Originating with radical and nationalist roots, at its beginnings, the party described itsel ...
withdrew Toroczkai's membership and excluded him from the party. In response, he established a new political movement which formed into a party called
Our Homeland Movement
Our Homeland Movement ( Hungarian: ''Mi Hazánk Mozgalom,'' MHM) is a Hungarian far-right political party founded by Ásotthalom mayor and former Jobbik Vice-President László Toroczkai and other Jobbik dissidents that left the organization aft ...
with fellow former Jobbik MP
Dóra Dúró
Dóra Dúró (born 5 March 1987) is a Hungarian politician of the Our Homeland Movement, formerly spokesperson of the far-right nationalist political party Jobbik.
After the 2010 elections, she was elected to the National Assembly of Hung ...
.
[Kizárta Toroczkait a Jobbik]
– Index, 2018.06.08.
In
2022 parliamentary elections,
Mi Hazank got above 5% threshold to enter parliament with 6%, winning 7 seats.
References
External links
Hungarian far-right figure attacked in Serbia
{{DEFAULTSORT:Toroczkai, Laszlo
1978 births
Living people
Critics of Islam
Jobbik politicians
Our Homeland Movement politicians
21st-century Hungarian politicians
Mayors of places in Hungary
Hungarian nationalists
Hungarian anti-communists
Far-right politics in Hungary
People from Csongrád-Csanád County
Members of the National Assembly of Hungary (2022–2026)