The Wire with Caeden

Over the weekend, Hungary held its 2026 general election, which saw the largest voter turnout in Hungary’s history as a democratic state. The electrified populace delivered a landslide victory for the relatively new ‘Respect and Freedom party,’ securing them a two-thirds majority in parliament. 

Incumbent Prime Minister Viktor Orbán has lost power after 16 years. For some younger voters, he is the only Prime Minister they can remember. Orbán has been a controversial figure throughout his long political career. To some, he is a power-hungry authoritarian who has stood in the way of European unity. To his supporters— which include US president Donald Trump—he is precisely the kind of strongman that a country like Hungary needs.

Producer Toby spoke to Chris Ogden, professor of global studies at Auckland University, about what Orbán’s defeat means for the future of global authoritarianism.

This week, on the Tuesday Wire...

For Dear Science this week, our expert, Dr Cushla McGoverin speaks with us about Male Contraceptives, osteoarthritis, and Kākāpō breeding

For our weekly catchup with the National Party, Host Alex spoke with Ryan Hamilton about the Auckland City deal between the Council and the Government, and Cyclone Vaianu.

For Green World today, Producer Liam spoke to Troy Baisden, Co-president of the New Zealand Association of Scientists and Adjunct Professor at Victoria University of Wellington, about the Ministry for the Environment’s recent Our Freshwater 2026 report on the state of Aotearoa’s freshwater systems, and causes for concern as well as opportunities for change. 

Host Alex also spoke with Teaching Fellow in the International Office at the University of Otago, Dr Balazs Kigilics, about Viktor Orban’s defeat inm the Hungarian elections, and what it means for the country after 16 years.

Last week, the Government and Auckland Council agreed on the ‘Auckland City Deal’, which seeks to enhance co-ordination between the two bodies to enable better investment in the city to get the most out of what Mayor Wayne Brown has called the ‘Engine’ of the economy. This will see better communication between the mayor and prime minister, co-operation on certain legislation, and funding.

The weekend also saw Cyclone Vaianu hit the country, with parts of the country facing damage and flooding. The government now has the job of responding to the damage, and deciding what needs to change, looking forward to future cyclones.

This week, Host Alex spoke with National Party MP Ryan Hamilton about each of these topics.

Auckland Council and the government have recently announced plans to cooperate with a new Auckland City Deal. The deal concerns collaborations between council and central government over the next few decades, across issues such as Eden Park’s ownership and operation or investigations into a potential bed levy. 

Part of the plan and part of Auckland Council’s recent disputes with government has been housing planning. In February of this year, the minimum housing cap for Auckland was lowered from 2 million to 1.6 million, and was lowered again in March to 1.4 million. 

The drop came alongside complaints from many residents of central suburbs such as Ponsonby, Mt Eden, and Epsom, who say intensification would hurt the character of their neighbourhoods. On the other side of the debate are those who say that intensification is necessary to ensure housing remains affordable, especially close to the CBD. 

To discuss the debate and what the City Deal has for Auckland, News Director Castor spoke to Senior Lecturer in Urban Planning, Dr. Elham Bahmanteymouri.