ABSTRACT
This chapter advances Stuart Hall's notion of authoritarian populism (AP). In doing so, the chapter applies it to Hungarian political development since the 2010s through analysis of the Fidesz government's relationship with domestic and international capital. This chapter locates the core origins of Hungarian authoritarian populism (HAP) not in 2010, the year the incumbent government was returned to power but in 2002 when following electoral defeat, a sustained, nationwide effort to consolidate deeper and longer-term support began. Part of HAP's continued success lies in the changes it has made to the ‘balance of forces’ and the stimulation of ‘moral panics’, which, in combination with its bonds with capital, has helped successfully reproduce the Fidesz project via consecutive electoral victories. This chapter opens the way for future research to develop additional investigations on the components of AP in post-socialist Europe and beyond.
