Ricz, J., Éltető, A.: The non-state actor contestation of battery factory investments in Hungary: the activism of GÖD-ÉRT and MIAKÖ

tury.g — Wed, 01 Jul 2026 10:00:22 +0000

The non-state actor contestation of battery factory investments in Hungary: the activism of GÖD-ÉRT and MIAKÖ

In: Society and Economy in Central and Eastern Europe, 48(2), 64-91.

DOI: https://doi.org/10.14267/1588970X.2026.015

Abstract

The article analyses non-state actor (NSA) agency at the intersection of autocratisation and new industrial policies. We focus on Hungary, an EU Member State that aims to become a leading global player in the electric vehicle sector, particularly in EV battery production. Besides the already functioning South Korean plants, numerous Chinese firms have been attracted to the country by extremely generous state support to build giga-factories. However, battery-related plants face opposition from the local population. Under the Hungarian autocratic regime, the space for NSA agency is increasingly shrinking, yet our focus is narrowed to analysing non-governmental organisations. We ask whether organised civil society can exercise political or domain-specific agency in an autocratising regime. Bottom-up initiatives against the battery factories mushroomed in all the affected Hungarian localities, which increasingly cooperated with each other, and even set up an umbrella organisation at the national level. Some important achievements are documented. To illustrate the causes of the limited non-state actor activism and nevertheless account for how impactful changes have occurred, the article analyses the experiences of two local associations: GÖD-ÉRT (the For Göd Association) and MIAKÖ (the Mothers of Mikepércs for the Environment Association). At the time of study, both have been forced to operate in an increasingly repressive setting.

A Ricz, J., Éltető, A.: The non-state actor contestation of battery factory investments in Hungary: the activism of GÖD-ÉRT and MIAKÖ bejegyzés először VGI-én jelent meg.

Éltető. A., Szemlér, T.: Hungary in the European Union – Cooperation, Peacock Dance and Autocracy

mta_vki — Mon, 16 Oct 2023 11:10:50 +0000

Hungary in the European Union – Cooperation, Peacock Dance and Autocracy

Authors: Andrea Éltető, Tamás Szemlér

In: Comparative Southeast European Studies, 71(3), 272-299.

DOI: https://doi.org/10.1515/soeu-2022-0051

Abstract

Hungary had been one of the frontrunners in the political and economic transition process in Central and Eastern Europe in the 1990s, and in 2004 it joined the European Union. Since 2010, Hungary has gradually become an autocratic regime, a process that has been facilitated by the political benefits of EU integration and money transfers. While the support of the Hungarian people for EU membership has remained high, tensions have increased between the Hungarian government and EU institutions. This article evaluates how the external shock of Russia’s war against Ukraine has shaken Hungary’s so far developed authoritarian equilibrium within the EU. The authors show how embedded the Hungarian autocracy has become and argue that although there have been some effects to the pillars of the authoritarian equilibrium, it has remained stable, and most probably will continue to do so, as long as the illiberal regime stays in power.

A Éltető. A., Szemlér, T.: Hungary in the European Union – Cooperation, Peacock Dance and Autocracy bejegyzés először VGI-én jelent meg.

autocracy Archívum - VGI

Ricz, J., Éltető, A.: The non-state actor contestation of battery factory investments in Hungary: the activism of GÖD-ÉRT and MIAKÖ

The non-state actor contestation of battery factory investments in Hungary: the activism of GÖD-ÉRT and MIAKÖ

Abstract

Éltető. A., Szemlér, T.: Hungary in the European Union – Cooperation, Peacock Dance and Autocracy

Hungary in the European Union – Cooperation, Peacock Dance and Autocracy

Abstract