The Authoritarian Temptation
The Crisis of Hungarian Democracy
Deutsche Fassung
Abstract
Since taking office in April 2010, the government under Viktor Orbán has been restructuring Hungary’s political system. It is moving away from the principles of a liberal constitutional state. In the name of “majority democracy”, the government has weakened the separation of powers, centralized the state, and expanded the prime minister’s powers. The root causes of this change lie in the Hungary’s political and social structural deficiencies. An illiberal democracy has now come into being. There is a risk that this will turn into a hybrid regime in which elements of democracy merge with elements of authoritarian rule. This would set a precedent in the European Union.
(Osteuropa 12/2011, pp. 65–88)