Cover Osteuropa 12/2011

In Osteuropa 12/2011

Hungary Energized
The Tectonics of the Political System

Ellen Bos


Deutsche Fassung

Abstract

Hungary was considered a pioneer of democratic reforms in the Soviet bloc. After 1989, the new democratic system quickly achieved a very high degree of stability by regional standards. Consolidation, however, was accompanied by growing polarization between the political camps. The tendency of political elites to call into question the legitimacy and integrity of their political opponents not only strains the ability of democratic institutions to function. It also poses risks to Hungarian democracy.

(Osteuropa 12/2011, pp. 39–64)