Incentives are everything. Since its founding in 1993, the European Union (EU) has understood this and become a master of soft power pressure and incentive-based democratic reforms. Indeed, as much as …
Exploring the Structural Causes Behind Hungary’s Backslide from Democracy
Earlier in 2020, while the pandemic dominated news headlines across the world, the NGO freedom house pushed out a silent but stunning report. One deeply alarming takeaway - there are now less …
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Prime Minister Viktor Orbán is Openly Whittling Away at Democracy
Hungary’s Prime Minister Viktor Orbán is no friend to open democracy as exemplified by his interference with the judicial branch, meddling in elections, and his latest authoritarian actions in …
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For Hungary, the Coronavirus is a Chance to Secure Ultimate Power by Cristen Canavino
For most people, it is virtually impossible to view the Coronavirus pandemic as anything but catastrophic, but for Hungary’s Prime Minister, Viktor Orban, the Coronavirus provides him with a unique …
Viktor Orban’s Pandemic Power Grab: Exploring How Populists Exploit Disasters to Edge Out Democracy
The COVID-19 pandemic is holding up a magnifying glass to the fragility of not only Hungary’s healthcare system but its already besieged democracy. In 2008, far-right populist Viktor Orban captured …
Anti-Immigrant Policies and Democratic Erosion in Hungary
Hungary’s prime minister Viktor Orban is a well-established populist and a wolf in sheep’s clothing when it comes to democratically elected leaders. His reputation and recent actions as an …
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Hungary’s Democracy on Paper Is a Danger to Europe by Daniel Abramson
This past week, Freedom House published its annual report on the status of democracy around the world. In the Freedom in the World …
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From Poster Child of Liberalism to “Illiberal State”: Viktor Orban and the Fall of Hungarian Democracy by Christopher Taylor @ Yale University
On July 30, 2014, Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban boldly declared that “the new state we are constructing in Hungary is an illiberal state.” Coming only three months after Orban’s Fidesz party …