ABSTRACT
The status of e-governance in East-Central Europe reflects the expansion and increasingly hegemonic status of neo-liberal ideology vis-à-vis the role of government in the region’s societies. Experiencing a unique and detrimental version of state ownership of property, the region has seen multiple governments embrace neo-liberal ideologies as a cleansing mechanism, ridding themselves of the vestiges of communist governance. This ideology has facilitated a reworking of societal expectations of government in the minds of various stakeholders, including the populace as a whole, businesses, and political parties. The common theme is greater emphasis on efficiency and service to customers, the people that governments formerly conceived of as just mere citizens of the nation-state. What is of interest is how this neo-liberal idea has permeated all parties in politics. Governments from Estonia and Slovenia have swung from left to right politically, two countries that are touted as examples of successful transitions to free market societies. Others such as Hungary and Poland have also experienced similar political shifts. The unifying factor is that all of them, as new members of the European Union, openly embrace the idea of e-governance to varying degrees and are concerned about being left behind as the European Union governance structures move toward a greater reliance on e-government.
