Disturbance in the force - a high-profile revolt in Fidesz' inner circles

HUNGARY - In Brief 30 Mar 2024 by Istvan Racz

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The last three weeks did not go particularly well for Fidesz from the domestic politics point of view. Previously, we wrote of the unfortunate case of a presidential pardon to a convicted pedophile-helper, which led to the sudden resignation of the president of the republic, the former minister of justice who most lately led Fidesz' list of candidates for the upcoming European Parliament elections, and the head of the Hungarian Reformed Church, most probably all forcefully urged by PM Orbán, who was apparently hoping to quickly get rid of this problem by these resignations and by a few instantly initiated legal amendments to enhance the protection of children. We also mentioned Mr. Péter Magyar, the ex-husband of Ms. Judit Varga the resigned former justice minister, and also a highly-positioned member of Fidesz' inner circles, who immediately turned sharply against Mr. Orbán's regime, and within that primarily against Mr. Antal Rogán, currently the minister supervising secret services and also the top person charged to run Fidesz' and the government's highly capable propaganda apparatus. Now, the problem for the government is that Mr. Magyar immediately managed to grab a massive amount of public attention. Fidesz has an impressive predominance in the local media as far as radio, television and newspapers are concerned. But the internet is essentially free, and currently the local share of internet users is around 70%. The original interview with Mr. Magyar was seen by well over two million viewers. He instantly gained popularity by a continuous flow of social media posts and interviews, in which he stated as his objective to provoke the (Fidesz-friendly) chief attorney...