Hungary

Since 2010, conspiracy theories have become an increasingly prominent feature of Hungarian political discourse due to the Fidesz government’s striking efforts at constructing a conspiracy theory universe around the figure of American-Hungarian philanthropist billionaire George Soros. In the past decade(s), Soros conspiracy theories, not just in Hungary, but in the broader region of Central and Eastern Europe, have become firmly embedded in the campaign slogans of various populist and/or illiberal politicians in their fight against liberal elites, the European Union, refugees and immigrants, changing gender norms, and socially progressive ideas. These contentious, conspiratorial narratives put forward by political elites about how global politics “actually” work draw up a picture of a grand-scale plot aimed at subverting nation-states, traditional societies, and certain established social and cultural norms. Furthermore, as evidenced by Viktor Orbán’s “illiberal state” project, these narratives are often tied to autocratizing efforts by demonizing civil society, independent media, NGOs, certain academic institutions, opposition parties, and minority groups, alleging their involvement in a clandestine conspiracy against the state, aided by shadowy foreign actors.

While certain ideological facets of the Orbán regime have received considerable attention in recent years, its conspiracy theories so far have not been systematically examined. The ERC-PACT subproject on Hungary attempted to fill this research gap by exploring the contents, forms, societal relevance, and political reverberations of conspiracy theories that are endorsed and/or produced by the current right-wing political establishment in Hungary.

Drawing on rich empirical material collected during a six-month immersive field research that took place in the run-up to and direct aftermath of the 2022 Hungarian parliamentary elections, the research project showed that conspiracy theories in Hungary cannot be considered “stigmatized knowledge” or counter-narratives. Rather, they are canonized knowledge claims, and dominant epistemic models inherent to the working logic of the illiberal Orbán regime in narrating and interpreting social reality. Furthermore, looking at the phenomenon more broadly, conspiracy theories as knowledge claims and meaning-making devices widely occur in both democratic and non-democratic contexts, and they can fulfill complex functions both as techniques of state power (e.g. mobilization and legitimization of state violence against out-groups) and as bottom-up suspicions or distorted critiques of (broadly understood) power, with the potential to create group identities. Complementing theoretical insights with empirical data, the project aimed to unpack the intricacies and practical ramifications of elite-endorsed conspiracism in a de-democratizing political setting. The monograph resulting from the project will be published by Routledge.

Turza, Lili. The Plot Against Hungary: Conspiracy Theories, Knowledge, and Politics under the Orbán Regime. Routledge, forthcoming fall 2026.

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