Caesarean politics in Hungary and Poland

We propose the new concept of Caesarean politics to explain democratic deconsolidation in Hungary and Poland. We argue the move towards illiberal democracy in both countries has been made possible by a shift towards Caesarean politics, in which radical changes are framed as "politics as usual&q...

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Bibliographic Details
Published inEast European politics Vol. 36; no. 2; pp. 206 - 225
Main Authors Sata, Robert, Karolewski, Ireneusz Pawel
Format Journal Article
LanguageEnglish
Published Abingdon Routledge 02.04.2020
Taylor & Francis Ltd
Subjects
Cesarean section
Democratic consolidation
Discourses
East-Central Europe
exclusionary identity
Friendship
Identity politics
Liberal democracy
patronal politics
Radicalism
state capture
Hungary
Poland
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Summary:We propose the new concept of Caesarean politics to explain democratic deconsolidation in Hungary and Poland. We argue the move towards illiberal democracy in both countries has been made possible by a shift towards Caesarean politics, in which radical changes are framed as "politics as usual", while in fact these challenge the essence of liberal democracy. Focusing on the three pillars of Caesarean politics: (1) patronal politics, (2) state capture, and (3) identity politics, we show how both countries become cases of Caesarean politics, where, using discourses of "friends" and "enemies", the leader coordinates vast patronal networks that capture the state.
ISSN:2159-9165
2159-9173
DOI:10.1080/21599165.2019.1703694