Overview
- Hungary’s parliament elected Magyar on Saturday by 140 votes to 54, giving his Tisza party control of 141 of 199 seats as large crowds gathered outside to watch.
- New speaker Agnes Forsthoffer ordered the EU flag raised over the Parliament building after 12 years, a symbolic reset of Budapest’s stance toward Europe.
- Magyar outlined an anti-corruption drive that includes joining the EU’s public prosecutor and creating an independent office to recover diverted assets, while urging Orban-era appointees to step down by May 30.
- He pressed EU leaders in Brussels last week to release frozen recovery money, with about €10 billion at risk by August as the Commission looks for concrete legal and institutional reforms.
- An early test of clean governance emerged when his proposed justice minister, who is his future brother-in-law, withdrew to avoid nepotism concerns, intensifying pressure for credible appointments and quick results.