Abstract

Viktor Orban has been Prime Minister of Hungary since 2010. To those citizens who vote for him, he is a brave statesman who dares to speak up for his country against the dominant powers in Brussels and Berlin. To his critics at home and abroad, he heads a government that is increasingly authoritarian, duplicitous, and corrupt. This talk will touch on nationalism, history, and ongoing culture wars. But the main focus will be contemporary political economy and dislocations in society (especially rural, provincial society) since the disintegration of socialism. Since both populist and fascist ideologies were strong in pre-socialist Hungary, applying these labels to the very different constellation in the country today is problematic.