Far-right leaders from the Patriots for Europe group are escalating their criticism of Hungary's new government under Prime Minister Péter Magyar, accusing him of undermining democracy. However, the European Commission remains broadly supportive of Magyar's anti-corruption campaign, which it views as a necessary step toward restoring rule-of-law standards in Budapest.
Magyar, who defeated longtime leader Viktor Orbán in April's parliamentary election, has launched a political initiative dubbed "Purgatorium" aimed at dismantling Orbán's entrenched system and removing officials appointed during his predecessor's tenure. The campaign has already claimed high-profile casualties: President Tamás Sulyok signed a constitutional amendment ending his own mandate last weekend, and Prosecutor General Gábor Bálint Nagy resigned this week, citing mounting political pressure.
On Tuesday, Orbán claimed prosecutors raided the headquarters of his Fidesz party, confiscating servers and disrupting communications. The raid is part of a corruption investigation into alleged misuse of cultural grants for Fidesz's election campaign. Orbán told journalists that "a political authoritarian system was established in Hungary," while Balázs Orbán, a Fidesz MP and close ally, told Euronews the raid was politically motivated. "It has nothing to do with the corruption case, which, according to our understanding, is itself a fake case," he said. "But if you want to investigate that fake case, it doesn't mean you need access to all the party's information and data."
Magyar has insisted the government is not interfering in the investigation, which he says operates independently. Prosecutors confirmed the raid is part of a probe into suspected fraud and other crimes. Dániel Hegedűs, deputy director of the Institut für Europäische Politik in Berlin, noted that tackling corruption was a central campaign promise of Magyar's Tisza party. "The key campaign message and campaign promise of the Tisza party was that those who committed criminal offences, particularly corruption, under Fidesz rule would be held responsible through the tools of criminal justice in Hungary," he said, adding that further investigations are likely.
EU Far Right Echoes Orbán's Complaints
Two weeks ago, around 50 MEPs from the European Parliament's right wing urged the European Commission to investigate Hungary's democratic standing, citing Magyar's push to remove Orbán-era officials. "Why is the Commission now silent when a government openly violates European constitutional principles?" the MEPs wrote in a letter, which also objected to the constitutional amendment imposing an age limit for constitutional court judges and capping parliamentary and prime ministerial terms. The Commission has yet to respond.
Orbán's allies across Europe have amplified his grievances. Italy's deputy prime minister, Matteo Salvini, wrote on X: "If democracy is bent to strike at the opposition, it is no longer democracy. And it is striking how deafening the silence is from Brussels." French opposition leader Marine Le Pen also posted on X, accusing Magyar of trampling democratic norms while being shielded by the Commission. The protests echo broader tensions within the EU, as seen in the far-right activists' legal challenge over a rejected petition.
Meanwhile, the Commission has quietly endorsed Magyar's reforms. Brussels and Budapest struck a deal to unfreeze €16.4 billion in previously withheld EU recovery funds, contingent on anti-corruption and transparency measures. Presenting the EU's annual rule of law report, Commissioner Michael McGrath praised Hungary's trajectory: "In Hungary more generally, we see some very positive trends." He declined to comment directly on Sulyok's removal, pending a report from the Venice Commission.
In an earlier interview with Euronews, McGrath acknowledged the necessity of personnel changes after a political earthquake. "It's inevitable when you have such a seismic change in a country's political landscape that there will be personnel changes," he said. "That's a normal scenario. What is important is that due process is always followed." Hegedűs agreed, arguing that dismantling state capture often requires removing political appointees, though he expressed concern about the 12-year limit on parliamentary terms in the constitutional amendment.
The standoff highlights a deepening rift between the EU's mainstream institutions and its far-right factions, with Budapest now a test case for how Brussels balances rule-of-law enforcement against political backlash. As Magyar presses ahead with his purge, the Commission's silence on Orbán allies' complaints suggests it is willing to tolerate short-term turbulence for long-term institutional reform.
