Illiberal Partners? Understanding Orbán's Pivot to Russia
Journal: Carolina Digital Repository (University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill)
Year: 2019

In July 2014, Viktor Orbán spoke to a group of ethnic Hungarians in Romania, and during this speech Orbán made his now famous quip about “illiberal democracy.” This thesis is an examination of how Hungary arrived at a cultural moment in which a democratically elected leader can disparage democracy, and the broader impact this cultural moment had on the geopolitical landscape of Central Europe. This thesis argues that the illiberal tendencies of Viktor Orbán coupled with developments in both dome