BRATISLAVA—The landslide electoral victory of a party founded by a brash billionaire in the Czech Republic last month seemed like just the latest sign of Central European politics becoming the domain of oligarchs. In nearby Hungary, Prime Minister Viktor Orban, whose illiberalism has rattled Europe for several years, has surrounded himself with friendly tycoons, doling out contracts to coddle government-friendly big business and consolidate his own political power. But for all the attention on Hungary and now the Czech Republic, where many fear what Andrej Babis will do if he is able to form a government and take power, the [...]
PRAGUE—Mainstream political parties in Central Europe have struggled in a series of recent elections to overcome their self-described anti-establishment rivals. In the Czech Republic’s legislative election on Oct. 20 and 21, the challenge proved too much, but that doesn’t mean the country is about to ditch democracy. Taking full advantage of an electorate that has grown cynical since the fall of communism 28 years ago, billionaire Andrej Babis drove his populist ANO party to an emphatic victory. Taking 30 percent of the vote, Babis’ party scored close to three times the support of its nearest rival. It was little surprise. [...]
On Oct. 15, Austrians will go to the polls to elect a new government, with all signs pointing to a rightward shift in its ruling coalition. Just two weeks before the parliamentary elections, the government put into force a new law that prohibits individuals from covering their faces in public—a not-so-subtle signal to right-wing voters of the government’s stance on Muslims and the full-body burqa and other coverings worn by some Muslim women. In an email interview, Stefan Lehne, a visiting scholar at Carnegie Europe and former director general of political affairs at the Austrian Ministry for European and International [...]
