Zsolt Semjén

**Zsolt Semjén** (born August 8, 1962) is a Hungarian politician and a member of the Hungarian Parliament. He is leading Christian Democratic People's Party since 2003. He is a minister without portfolio and deputy prime minister in Viktor Orbán's second, third, fourth, and fifth governments.

## Political career

In 1989, when politics changed in Hungary, he helped restart the Christian Democratic People's Party. From 1990 to 1994, he was a local council member. In 1994, he became a Member of Parliament and later the deputy leader of KDNP. After the dissolution of the parliamentary faction of KDNP in 1994, he joined the Hungarian Democratic Forum. In 1998, Viktor Orbán made him a government official for church matters.

He organized an international church summit in Hungary, fixed problems with the Vatican, brought back government money for religious education, made a deal with old churches, and made sure churches doing public services got the same money as the government. In 2002, Semjén returned to parliament.

Later, he rejoined the extra-parlamentary KDNP and became its leader in 2003Under his leadership, the KDNP formed a cooperation agreement with Fidesz in 2005.

He and his wife represented Hungary's government when former Hungarian Crown Prince Otto von Habsburg was buried in Pannonhalma Archabbey. They were the only non-clergy or non-Habsburg family members there.

From May 29, 2010, he became the Deputy Prime Minister in Orbán's second government.

On September 8, 2025, Válasz Online released an interview. Gábor Kuslits, a former top official from Budapest Regional Child Protection Service, said Péter Pál Juhász, ex-director of the Szőlő Street Juvenile Center, was linked to child abuse. Politicians reportedly sexually abused boys and girls from that center.

On September 22, 2025, in the National Assembly a Democratic Coalition MP Gergely Arató asked Zsolt Semjén, "Who is Uncle Zsolti?" Earlier that month, someone on a Hungarian politician's podcast said kids at a children's home claimed their abuser was "Uncle Zsolt." They recognized a top politician's voice as Uncle Zsolt's. The podcast title "Who is Uncle Zsolt?" became popular online and Arató used it in his question.

Semjén said the claims were false, calling them an attempt to ruin his reputation. The Ministry of Justice found that no one in the government is involved of child abuse or human trafficking.

## External links

- Zsolt Semjén's website
- Website of the Christian Democratic People's Party

## Infobox (officeholder)

- **name**: Zsolt Semjén
- **image**: Semjen Zsolt portre.jpg
- **party**: Christian Democratic People's Party (Hungary), Christian Democratic People's Party
- **order2**: Minister without portfolio for National Politics, Church Politics and Church Diplomacy
- **order1**: Deputy Prime Minister of Hungary
- **primeminister1**: Viktor Orbán
- **birth date**: 8 August 1962
- **birth place**: Budapest, Hungarian People's Republic, Hungary
- **order**: Parliament of Hungary, Member of the National Assembly
- **termstart1**: 1 June 2010
- **termstart2**: 24 May 2022
- **termstart**: 15 May 2002
- **caption**: Official portrait
- **nationality**: Hungarians, Hungarian