After this year’s general election ended Viktor Orbán’s long period of sole rule, ALDE Party’s Hungarian member Momentum is pushing to overturn one of the most controversial policies of the Orbán era: the so-called “heartbeat decree”.
Introduced in 2022, the decree requires women seeking an abortion to receive medical confirmation of the foetus' vital functions before undergoing the procedure. The measure is widely known as the “heartbeat decree” because, in practice, this has generally meant being shown the foetal heartbeat.
Abortion has been legal in Hungary since 1953, but the Orbán government argued that the measure could help raise the country’s birth rate. However, the figures have not shown a significant reduction in abortion rates. It stood at 10.1 per 1,000 women in 2022, fell to 9.6 in 2024 and rose again to 9.9 in 2025.
Critics argue that the decree does little to address the causes of unwanted pregnancies and instead adds psychological pressure to an already difficult decision. Many have described the requirement as unscientific, politically motivated and designed to induce guilt rather than prevent abortions.
The new government has placed restoring the rule of law and protecting human rights among its priorities, including a review of restrictive social policies inherited from the previous administration.
Over the summer, the Hungarian parliament descended into emotional and polarised shouting matches over the decree. For many, the debate went beyond the policy itself. They argued that a traumatic and guilt-inducing requirement had no place in a Europe that respects women’s rights, and no place in a post-Orbán Hungary.
Frustrated by the pace of the legislative process, Momentum has now taken the initiative directly to the Ministry of Health. The liberal party delivered a ready-made draft decree proposing the systematic abolition of the heartbeat requirement and says it will return every Monday with a fresh copy until the regulation is withdrawn.
By launching an aggressive direct-action campaign, the party has successfully forced the issue into the daily news cycle. Momentum is also pushing a different approach to reducing abortion rates: preventing unwanted pregnancies in the first place through comprehensive sex education and accessible contraception.
Party leader Szilas Kincső says on the issue:
“Everyone decides for themselves whether their life situation is suitable for having a child. The heart rate regulation is a traumatising, guilt-inducing regulation that crosses women's personal boundaries - and it does not achieve its goal, since the number of abortions does not decrease.
It is suitable only for emotional blackmail. What would really reduce the number of abortions: preventing unwanted pregnancies. This requires education and contraception available to everyone.”
For Momentum, the fight over the decree reflects a bigger question for post-Orbán Hungary: will it move towards a more rights-based European future, or remain shaped by the restrictive policies of the past? The heartbeat decree has become a test of which direction Hungary takes next.