Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbán's emerging political movement successfully attracted enough parties on Saturday to gain recognition from the European Parliament, strengthening his plans to shift Brussels to the right. The nationalist leader announced on June 30 his intention to form a new parliamentary group in the EU called "Patriots for Europe," promising to initiate a "new era that will change European politics."
At an event in Strasbourg, he announced this alongside the far-right Austrian Freedom Party and the centrist ANO Party led by former Czech Prime Minister Andrej Babiš. Since then, five other parties have stated their intention to join the bloc. Among these are Geert Wilders' anti-Islam Party for Freedom from the Netherlands, the far-right CHIGA Party from Portugal, and the Spanish Vox Party.
With the Danish People's Party and the Flemish nationalist party Vlaams Belang announcing their membership on Saturday, the "Patriots for Europe" bloc meets the European Parliament's criteria for official recognition, surpassing the threshold of 23 members from seven countries. Orbán stated that the parties forming the bloc will meet on Monday in Brussels. By then, Orbán will know whether the French National Rally has chosen to join him after the second round of legislative elections in the country on Sunday. If the National Rally decides to join, it will become the largest political force within the bloc with 30 members in the European Parliament.
The Italian League party led by Matteo Salvini has also expressed interest in the new movement but has not confirmed its participation. Orbán, whose country holds the rotating presidency of the EU, has long criticized "the elites in Brussels." He seeks for his bloc to become the dominant right-wing force in the European Parliament. In addition to organizing campaigns to promote conservative family values, the bloc will particularly oppose European support for Ukraine against the Russian invasion.
