András Tivadar Kulja (born 17 September 1989) is a Hungarian doctor, internet personality, and politician of the Tisza Party who was elected member of the European Parliament in 2024.[1] He posts health education content to several platforms, the most popular of which is his TikTok account.[2]
András Kulja | |
|---|---|
.jpg) Official portrait, 2024 | |
| Member of the European Parliament | |
| Assumed office 16 July 2024 | |
| Constituency | Hungary |
| Personal details | |
| Born | András Tivadar Kulja 17 September 1989 |
| Party | Tisza |
Other political affiliations | European People's Party |
| Semmelweis University | |
| TikTok information | |
| Page | |
| Followers | 377 thousand |
| Last updated: 15 December 2025 | |
Early life
editAndrás Kulja was born in Nyíregyháza on 17 September 1989.[3] His mother is a psychiatrist[4] and his father is a microbiologist.[5] His parents are from Transcarpathia.[2]
He studied medicine at Semmelweis University in Budapest. After graduating in 2016, he worked as a resident physician in psychiatry for one and a half years. While pursuing medical school and residency, he carried out research into depression.[4][6] Later, he left the field and started his training in surgery, citing a wish for a more dynamic workflow and performing manual tasks.[6] His decision was also shaped by his prior experience of assisting in veterinary surgeries with a veterinarian family member.[4] He began teaching at Semmelweis University in 2022.[4]
Aiming to share healthcare information with a wider audience, he posted his first YouTube video in 2019, and launched his TikTok account in 2021.[4] As of June 2024, he had 368,000 followers on TikTok.[2]
Political career
editOn 6 April 2024, Kulja attended a demonstration in Kossuth Square organized by Péter Magyar, and became committed to the Tisza Party.[7] Although he was scheduled to take his specialty exam in surgery in May, he postponed it and left his job as a surgical trainee in April, citing a desire to "speak openly and without retribution" about the situation in Hungarian healthcare, as well as an intention to focus on his political engagement.[2]
He was placed fourth on Tisza's party list for the European Parliament election.[8] On 9 June, the party won a total of seven seats, and Kulja was confirmed as a member of the European Parliament.[9] In July, he was elected a vice-chair of the European Parliament Committee on the Environment, Public Health and Food Safety.[10] Soon after his election as an MEP, he mentioned participation in health policy programs and improvement of health literacy among his aims.[11]
In June 2025, Kulja was a joint winner of the Best Newcomer Award at the MEP Awards.[12][13]
References
edit- ↑ "The results of the European Parliament election". National Election Office.
- 1 2 3 4 Cseke, Balázs (8 June 2024). "Péter Magyar can make people get out of their armchairs, his MEP candidate says". Telex.hu. Retrieved 10 August 2025.
- ↑ "András Tivadar Kulja". European Parliament.
- 1 2 3 4 5 Tóth, András (9 February 2024). "A TikTok András dokija: célom a videóimmal a hiteles és érthető edukáció és prevenció!". WEBBeteg (in Hungarian). Retrieved 10 August 2025.
- ↑ Tamás, Anita (29 August 2022). "A férfi, aki bejön nekünk: dr. Kulja András, a TikTok orvosa". Marie Claire (in Hungarian). Retrieved 10 August 2025.
- 1 2 Hercsel, Adél (20 May 2021). "A rengeteg szenvedés közepette láttunk nem egy csodás gyógyulást". Index.hu (in Hungarian). Retrieved 10 August 2025.
- ↑ "Kulja András: Előfordul, hogy egy kórházi osztály nem vallja be a szakemberhiányt, inkább kozmetikázza a számokat". Népszava (in Hungarian). 6 June 2024.
- ↑ Barnóczki, Brigitta; Pál, Tamás (30 April 2024). "Leadta európai parlamenti listáját a Tisza Párt". Telex.hu (in Hungarian). Retrieved 10 August 2025.
- ↑ "Átvették megbízóleveleiket a magyar EP-képviselők". Magyar Hang (in Hungarian). 24 June 2024. Retrieved 10 August 2025.
- ↑ "Posztokat osztottak az EP-ben: a Tisza Párt örülhetett, egy fideszes képviselő "koszt takarított", miután leszavazták a Patriótákat". HVG (in Hungarian). 23 July 2024. Retrieved 10 August 2025.
- ↑ Peseckytė, Giedrė (29 July 2024). "Meet the TikTok doc who wants to flip Hungary's view of the EU". Politico. Retrieved 10 August 2025.
- ↑ "Winners 2025". MEP Awards. Retrieved 1 July 2025.
- ↑ Shenouda, Nóra (24 June 2025). "A Tisza Pártos Kulja András az év legjobb új európai parlamenti képviselője". Euronews (in Hungarian). Retrieved 10 August 2025.