The European Commission on Wednesday sent a letter of formal notice to Hungary, launching an infringement procedure over the country’s Sovereignty Protection Act, saying it breached EU law. Zoltán Kovács said in a post on Facebook that it was a “fact” that “the dollar left’s top contributor” in the 2022 general election campaign had been US financier George Soros. He noted that the Sovereignty Protection Act criminalises the acceptance of foreign campaign donations. The state secretary said the government was standing by the law, as 98% of the respondents to the last National Consultation public survey had expressed agreement with the legislation.
In a statement, ruling Fidesz said “we are not even surprised” that “Brussels does not like it that the Sovereignty Protection Act has criminalised the acceptance of foreign campaign financing”. The party reiterated its position of calling for tightening the rules on attempted foreign influence, asserting that “only the Hungarian people are entitled to decide about Hungary’s future”.