1. Absolutely Corrupted: The Rise of an Illiberal System and The Future of Hungarian Democracy
- Author:
- Anna Júlia Donáth
- Publication Date:
- 03-2021
- Content Type:
- Journal Article
- Journal:
- Brown Journal of World Affairs
- Institution:
- Brown Journal of World Affairs
- Abstract:
- “Power tends to corrupt, and absolute power corrupts absolutely.”1 Lord John Dalberg-Acton’s words should not be relevant in the era of modern democracy, when political power is distributed and filtered through the institu- tions of checks and balances. Absolute power should simply be off the table. Yet, as shown by the events unfolding in Hungary in the last decade, democratic institutions can be transformed into mere façades that obscure the grim reality of unchecked power in the hands of one person. In the case of Hungary, this man is Viktor Orbán, the leader of Hungary’s dominant right-wing party.
- Topic:
- Corruption, Democracy, Far Right, and Illiberalism
- Political Geography:
- Europe and Hungary