Introduction

Abstract

This introductory chapter presents the overall aims of the book. It starts with setting out the empirical puzzle, describing the retreat of liberal democracy globally and in Hungary. The ‘third wave of democratisation’ is over. A series of countries, previously committed to the blueprints of international institutions, are succumbing to illiberal forces. The chapter assesses the state of the art of the relevant literature, identifying the strengths and the weaknesses of existing approaches. The retreat of liberal democracy has taken most democracy scholars aback due to the limitations of popular approaches. This demonstrates the need for a new, theoretically driven causal narrative and a new political-economic concept of the post-2010 Hungarian state. The chapter concludes with an overview of the book.