FOCUS ON HUNGARY
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The Heinrich Böll Foundation is compiling a dossier containing articles on the situation in Hungary since the right-wing government came to power in April 2010.

The arguments and opinions presented in the dossier provide an acute, sometimes trenchant critique of the current government and its policies. Democracy is a never-finished task, and we see our role in supporting the democratic voices in Hungary and raising public attention in Europe with regard to critical developments in our common political space.

Burtejin Zorigt, Editor of the dossier (burtejin.zorigt@cz.boell.org)

Latest articles
January 05, 2019: Hungary's anti-government protests and 'slave law' protests in Budapest, Hungary

Will There Be a Political Left in Hungary Again?

There will be — but it is unlikely to arise from the current so-called “left-wing” parties. The European Parliamentary elections have shown that the Democratic Coalition (DK) has not, after all, become the strongest force in the opposition — not even after taking the Hungarian Socialist Party (MSZP) and Dialogue for Hungary (Párbeszéd) under its wing. They have all merely shrunk simultaneously. Has the political left collapsed? On the contrary: it may now have a real chance to be born.
By Márk Áron Éber
Viktor Orbán

EU–Hungary rule of law clashes intensify: Kremlin-inspired crackdown on media, NGOs, and opposition parties

Analysis
With less than a year to go until the next Hungarian parliamentary elections, Viktor Orbán’s Government appears to have a weak hand in its communications battles with its new political opponent, Péter Magyar’s Tisza party. To cover up the challenges it faces, the administration has turned up the heat under the independent media, NGOs, and opposition parties, playing from the same old authoritarian playbook of threatening a free civil society.
By Kata Moravecz and György Folk
More
Donald Trump and Viktor Orban, World leaders arrives for Working dinner, during NATO (North Atlantic Treaty Organization) SUMMIT 2018

How Trump’s Second Presidency Empowered Orbán: Cracking Down on Civil Rights and Strengthening Ties with Putin

In his annual state of the nation address at the end of February, “looking back from the cooling shade of the American electoral victory”, Hungary’s Prime Minister reinforced his ideological alignment with Donald Trump by announcing draconian measures against those whom he rhetorically frames as enemies of his patriotic, illiberal agenda – NGOs, the LGBTQ+ community, the opposition, and independent media – and doctrinally entrenched himself alongside Trump on Ukraine and against migrants. Viktor Orbán considers Trump “the only man who can save the Western world, and probably the human beings on the globe as well”. 
By Anna Frenyó
Photo from Budapest Pride 2021, people at the Green - Liberty bridge

Legislative bullying of protesters - The ban on Pride in Hungary, 2025

After the Prime Minister's announcement banning the 2025 Pride parade, MPs of the governing majority swiftly passed constitutional amendments. These new laws ban assemblies that might breach the "LGBTQI Propaganda" Law, impose fines on participants, and allow police to use facial recognition technology to identify them. This amendment, set to take effect on 15 April 2025, violates the rights of LGBTQI people and their supporters, while also infringing on the privacy of all citizens by enabling mass surveillance and stoking fear among those who oppose the government's policies.
By Szabolcs Hegyi
Viktor Orban, Donald Trump

Orbán Took a Big Risk and Won

Analysis
For Hungary’s prime minister, who has backed Donald Trump for years, a victory in the U.S. presidential election means more than a symbolic win – it could also deliver concrete advantages. In the short term, such a result would bolster Viktor Orbán’s position both internationally and domestically. However, differences in political priorities and in economic interests in particular could create friction between Washington and Budapest in the medium to long term. Given Trump’s unpredictability, there is no guarantee that Orbán’s promises – such as swift peace in Ukraine and an economic boom – will come to pass. 
By Political Capital
All dossier articles
Publications
Study on the state of the populist radical right and Hungarian influence building

Illiberal advance, but no breakthrough – yet?

Study
Political Capital's study on the state of the populist radical right and Hungarian influence building, in cooperation with the Heinrich-Böll Foundation, aims to take stock of the "super election year" of 2024: how it has reshaped the scene for illiberal populist actors, and what it has brought to the Orbán regime in its efforts to build international influence and promote itself as a model of populism on the international stage.
By Political Capital

Political integration of Hungarian students, 2019

After a four-year absence, the Active Youth (Aktív Fiatalok) Research Group has returned with a new survey about the political attitudes of higher education students in Hungary. The significance of this year’s findings relies on the fact that the political views of the majority of students sampled in this most recent survey – including some born as recently as 2000 – were formed during consecutive terms of prime minister Viktor Orbán and his government, considered by many political scientists and commentators to be a hybrid regime.

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