Hungary PM Orban backs Germany’s Weber for top EU job – Budapest

Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban is backing Germany’s Manfred Weber to be the center-right’s candidate to head the European Commission, MTI news agency quoted Orban’s cabinet chief Antal Rogan as saying on Thursday. The current president of the EU executive Jean-Claude Juncker will stand down next year. Former Finnish prime minister Alexander Stubb is so far Weber’s only rival to be the center-right European People’s Party (EPP) lead candidate, and secure the nomination to replace Juncker. Orban has clashed with the EU over immigration and other issues. Orban’s Fidesz party, which won Hungary’s elections by a landslide in April, is expected to dominate the Hungarian vote in European Parliament elections in May. That group can have an important say in the EPP which currently holds 219 seats as the biggest group in the 751-member assembly and hopes to promote its lead candidate for the top EU job, Reuters reports. Weber, who can also be confident of support from German Chancellor Angela Merkel, criticized the Hungarian government last month when the European Parliament voted to sanction Hungary for flouting EU rules.