BUDAPEST, April 15 -- After the euphoria of his stunning defeat of Viktor Orban in Sunday's parliamentary elections, Peter Magyar faces the Herculean task of loosening the longtime nationalist leader's vice-like grip on Hungary's institutions.

His two-thirds majority in parliament should provide the backing the former government insider-turned-critic needs to enact the radical break from the 16-year-long Orban era, Magyar promised a population weary of rampant corruption.

Restoring ties with the European Union, balancing the central European nation's books and fixing the degraded state of Hungary's public services will also be in the 45-year-old's in-tray.

'Hound you out'

As he criss-crossed the country throughout his electoral campai...