“The turnout to what was billed as the 'Patriots' Grand Assembly' in Hungary wasn't exactly overwhelming.”

“Only around 2,000 people gathered in Budapest’s Millenaris Park last Monday afternoon.”

“Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban appeared alongside other prominent leaders from the ranks of European populist and far-right movements, including Geert Wilders from the Netherlands, Marine Le Pen from France and Santiago Abascal of Spain.”

“Orban’s prominent guests delivered eulogies to Hungary’s prime minister that bordered on a personality cult.”

“Wilders called him a 'lion,' Italy's Matteo Salvini praised him as a 'true hero' and Austria's Herbert Kickl said in a video message that Orban was the 'only one who can see among the blind in Brussels.'”

“Orban himself delivered an uninspired speech full of the cliches he has become known for.”

“He told the audience that EU countries led by liberal-progressive governments are sliding further into economic and social ruin, while Hungary, under his leadership, is thriving with a booming economy.”

“Fidesz lags behind the opposition”

“The Hungarian government is diverting all available state financial resources and even personnel from the state apparatus to the election campaign — which is not legal.”

“Orban's party, the Hungarian Civic Alliance or Fidesz, still trails the opposition party Tisza, or the Respect and Freedom Party, by a wide margin in the polls.”

“The latest corruption scandal centers on former National Bank chief, Gyorgy Matolcsy.”

“Matolcsy had a deluxe bathroom built for himself out of gold and black marble, complete with golden toilet brushes and golden toilet paper holders.”

“The Matolcsy family and the National Bank have been making headlines for years. The former MNB president was revealed to have funneled public funds into a complex scheme, which Matolcsy’s son Adam and his circle of friends used to finance their lavish lifestyle.”

“The latest scandal surrounding the MNB building renovation came to light because the independent media outlet, 444.hu, won a long legal battle to have relevant documents released.”

“Samsung had violated environmental regulations for years and exposed workers to toxic heavy-metal dust. Although the government was aware of this, it took no action.”

“Foreign Minister Peter Szijjarto is even said to have prevented the factory from being sanctioned.”

“Szabolcs Panyi published a transcript of a 2020 conversation between Foreign Minister Szijjarto and his Russian counterpart Sergey Lavrov, in which Szijjarto submissively asks for campaign assistance for populist and far-right nationalist parties in Hungary’s neighbor, Slovakia.”

“Szijjarto had been calling Moscow regularly during European Council meetings in Brussels, in order to brief the Kremlin leadership.”

“Szijjarto himself has since admitted to the conversations but described them as standard diplomatic practice.”

“The 'Patriots' Grand Assembly'— the event was named after the nationalists' political group in the European parliament — also rubbed some Budapest residents the wrong way.”

“Many passersby hadn’t even heard of the gathering.”

“The string of recent scandals had undermined the nationalists' reputations.”