The refugee crisis, the illiberal populist challenge and the future of the EU: is illiberal democracy on the march? The case of Hungary

At the summer camp held in Romania in 2014, the Hungarian Prime Minister presented to the audience his groundbreaking political programme, foreseeing the setup of a new state model, that of the work-based state, based on illiberal democratic community organizing tenets. His announcement was accompanied by heavy criticism in the EU and also outside the community. Analysing and understanding the path towards illiberal democracy in Hungary is the main objective of the current research. By using the world-systems theory of Wallerstein, we endeavour to assess the transition of Hungary towards illiberalism, as an outcome of its position occupied within the existent modern world-system and also that of a constant juggling of liberal and illiberal tendencies. Furthermore, we contend that the recent refugee crisis masterfully engineered as an existential threat by the governmental apparatus to the reference object (citizens), was deliberately used to consolidate domestic political power.