Wilders Insists Patriots for Europe Remains Strong Despite Orbán's Setback

Dutch far-right politician Geert Wilders has defended the Patriots for Europe parliamentary group in the European Parliament, insisting it remains a powerful force despite a significant blow to its profile. The group, which brings together nationalist and eurosceptic parties from across the EU, now has only one representative on the European Council — the EU's top decision-making body composed of member state heads of government — following a political defeat for Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbán, who had been one of the group's most prominent figures. Orbán, whose Fidesz party anchors the Patriots for Europe bloc, lost influence within the European Council after failing to secure a key position or build a blocking majority, leaving the group with diminished representation at the EU's highest level. Patriots for Europe, formed in 2024, had positioned itself as a major challenger to the EU's mainstream political establishment, making Orbán's setback a symbolic as well as a practical weakening of the group's ambitions to shape European policy from within.