Edited by Astrid Lorenz · Lisa H. Anders Illiberal Trends and Anti-EU Politics in East Central Europe PALGRAVE STUDIES IN EUROPEAN UNION POLITICS SERIES EDITORS: MICHELLE EGAN · NEILL NUGENT · WILLIAM E. PATERSON Palgrave Studies in European Union Politics Series Editors Michelle Egan American University Washington, USA Neill Nugent Manchester Metropolitan University Manchester, UK William E. Paterson Aston University Birmingham, UK Following on the sustained success of the acclaimed European Union Series, which essentially publishes research-based textbooks, Palgrave Studies in European Union Politics publishes cutting edge research-driven monographs. The remit of the series is broadly defined, both in terms of subject and academic discipline. All topics of significance concerning the nature and operation of the European Union potentially fall within the scope of the series. The series is multidisciplinary to reflect the growing importance of the EU as a political, economic and social phenomenon. To submit a proposal, please contact Senior Editor Ambra Finotello ambra.finotello@palgrave.com. Editorial Board Laurie Buonanno (SUNY Buffalo State, USA) Kenneth Dyson (Cardiff University, UK) Brigid Laffan (European University Institute, Italy) Claudio Radaelli (University College London, UK) Mark Rhinard (Stockholm University, Sweden) Ariadna Ripoll Servent (University of Bamberg, Germany) Frank Schimmelfennig (ETH Zurich, Switzerland) Claudia Sternberg (University College London, UK) Nathalie Tocci (Istituto Affari Internazionali, Italy) More information about this series at http://www.palgrave.com/gp/series/14629 Astrid Lorenz · Lisa H. Anders Editors Illiberal Trends and Anti-EU Politics in East Central Europe Editors Astrid Lorenz Institute of Political Science Leipzig University Leipzig, Germany Lisa H. Anders Institute of Political Science Leipzig University Leipzig, Germany ISSN 2662-5873 ISSN 2662-5881 (electronic) Palgrave Studies in European Union Politics ISBN 978-3-030-54673-1 ISBN 978-3-030-54674-8 (eBook) https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-54674-8 © The Editor(s) (if applicable) and The Author(s) 2021. This book is an open access publication. Open Access This book is licensed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/), which permits use, sharing, adaptation, distribution and reproduction in any medium or format, as long as you give appropriate credit to the original author(s) and the source, provide a link to the Creative Commons license and indicate if changes were made. The images or other third party material in this book are included in the book’s Creative Commons license, unless indicated otherwise in a credit line to the material. 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Cover illustration: © Magic Lens/Shutterstock This Palgrave Macmillan imprint is published by the registered company Springer Nature Switzerland AG The registered company address is: Gewerbestrasse 11, 6330 Cham, Switzerland Acknowledgements The authors gratefully acknowledge the financial support of Erasmus+ Programme of the European Union. The European Commission support for the production of this publication does not constitute an endorse- ment of the contents which reflects the views only of the authors, and the Commission cannot be held responsible for any use which may be made of the information contained therein. v Contents 1 Examining Illiberal Trends and Anti-EU Politics in East Central Europe from a Domestic Perspective: State of Research and Outline of the Book 1 Lisa H. Anders and Astrid Lorenz Part I Societal Roots of the Illiberal Trends and Anti-EU Politics 2 Illiberal and Anti-EU Politics in the Name of the People? Euroscepticism in East Central Europe 2004–2019 in Comparative Perspective 29 Lars Vogel 3 The Varying Challenge of Islamophobia for the EU: On Anti-Muslim Resentments and Its Dividend for Right-Wing Populists and Eurosceptics—Central and Eastern Europe in a Comparative Perspective 57 Gert Pickel and Cemal Öztürk vii viii CONTENTS 4 Is There an East–West Divide over European Solidarity? Comparing European Citizens’ Attitudes Towards Cross-Border Solidarity 2016 81 Florian K. Kley and Holger Lengfeld Part II Rhetoric and Practice of Illiberal and Anti-EU Politics 5 Differential Illiberalism: Classifying Illiberal Trends in Central European Party Politics 111 Vratislav Havlík and Vít Hloušek 6 Party Rhetoric and Action Compared: Examining Politicisation and Compliance in the Field of Asylum and Migration Policy in the Czech Republic and Hungary 137 Paula Beger 7 Pro-Europeans and ‘Euro-Realists’: The Party-Voters Linkage and Parties’ Political Agendas in Poland, 2004–2019 157 Michał Dulak 8 Same Same, but Different: Domestic Conditions of Illiberal Backlash Against Universal Rights in the Czech Republic and Slovakia 179 Petra Guasti Part III EU Reactions to Illiberal and Anti-EU Politics 9 Talking Past Each Other: On Common Misperceptions in the Rule of Law Debate 209 Attila Vincze CONTENTS ix 10 Does It Help to Call a Spade a Spade? Examining the Legal Bases and Effects of Rule of Law-Related Infringement Procedures Against Hungary 235 Lisa H. Anders and Sonja Priebus 11 Safeguarding Democracy and the Rule of Law by Civil Society Actors? The Case of Poland 263 Claudia-Y. Matthes Part IV Theoretical Reflections and Conclusions 12 Contesting the EU, Contesting Democracy and Rule of Law in Europe. Conceptual Suggestions for Future Research 285 Luca Tomini and Seda Gürkan 13 Towards a Political Theory of Democratic Backsliding? Generalising the East Central European Experience 301 Ireneusz Paweł Karolewski 14 Illiberal Trends and Anti-EU Politics in East Central Europe: Major Findings and Avenues for Future Research 323 Astrid Lorenz and Lisa H. Anders Index 349 List of Contributors Lisa H. Anders Leipzig University, Leipzig, Germany Paula Beger Leipzig University, Leipzig, Germany Michał Dulak Jagiellonian University, Kraków, Poland Petra Guasti Goethe University Frankfurt, Frankfurt, Germany Seda Gürkan Université libre de Bruxelles, Brussels, Belgium Vratislav Havlík Masaryk University, Brno, Czech Republic Vít Hloušek Masaryk University, Brno, Czech Republic Ireneusz Paweł Karolewski Leipzig University, Leipzig, Germany Florian K. Kley Leipzig University, Leipzig, Germany Holger Lengfeld Leipzig University, Leipzig, Germany Astrid Lorenz Leipzig University, Leipzig, Germany Claudia-Y. Matthes Humboldt-Universität zu Berlin, Berlin, Germany Cemal Öztürk University Duisburg-Essen, Duisburg, Germany Gert Pickel Leipzig University, Leipzig, Germany Sonja Priebus Otto-von-Guericke-University Magdeburg, Magdeburg, Germany xi xii LIST OF CONTRIBUTORS Luca Tomini Université libre de Bruxelles, Brussels, Belgium Attila Vincze Andrássy University Budapest, Budapest, Hungary Lars Vogel Leipzig University, Leipzig, Germany Abbreviations ALDE Alliance of Liberals and Democrats for Europe ANO (2011) Akce nespokojených obˇ can ̊ u, Action of Dissatisfied Citizens CBOS Centrum Badania Opinii Społecznej, Polish social research center CEE Central and Eastern Europe CEU Central European University CFR Charter of Fundamental Rights of the European Union CJEU Court of Justice of the European Union ˇ CSSD ˇ Ceská strana sociálnˇ e demokratická, Czech Social Democratic Party ECB European Central Bank ECE East Central Europe, East Central European ECtHR European Court of Human Rights EFSF European Financial Stability Facility EMU European Monetary Union EP European Parliament ESM European Stability Mechanism ESS European Social Survey Fidesz Federation of Young Democrats—Hungarian Civic Alliance HFHR Helsinki Foundation for Human Rights HUF Hungarian Forint ILGA International Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Trans and Intersex Associ- ation IMF International Monetary Fund KDNP Kereszténydemokrata Néppárt, Christian Democratic People’s Party xiii xiv ABBREVIATIONS KOD Komitet Obrony Democracij, Committee for the Defence of Democracy KOS Komitet Obrony Sprawiedliwo ́ sci, Justice Defense Committee LGBT Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual and Transgender MC Monetary Council MEP Member of the European Parliament MSZP Hungarian Socialist Party MT Media Council NB National Bank NCJ National Council of the Judiciary NGO Non-Governmental Organisation NJC National Judicial Council NMHH National Media and Infocommunications Authority NUTS Nomenclature of Territorial Units for Statistics ODS Civic Democratic Party OL’aNO Obyˇ cajní ˇ ludia a nezávislé osobnosti, Party of the Ordinary People and Independent Personalities OSCE Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe PES Party of European Socialists PiS Prawo i Sprawiedliwo ́ s ́ c, Law and Justice Party PO Platforma Obywatelska, Civic Platform PSL Polskie Stronnictwo Ludowe, Polish People’s Party SaS Sloboda a Solidarita, Freedom and Solidarity party SC Supreme Court SMER Sociálna demokracia, Social Democracy SPD Svoboda a pˇ rímá demokracie, Freedom and Direct Democracy TESS Transnational European Solidarity Survey TEU Treaty on European Union TFEU Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union TK Trybunał Konstytucyjny, Polish Constitutional Tribunal List of Figures Chapter 1 Fig. 1 Trust in national government and in the EU, 2004–2019 6 Chapter 2 Fig. 1 Diffuse regime support: EU membership is a good thing (Means 2004–2019, EES) 39 Fig. 2 Input-specific support: Satisfaction with EU democracy (Means 2004/9/19, EES) 40 Fig. 3 Policy-specific support: Evaluation of European integration (Means 2009–2019, EES) 40 Fig. 4 Types of Euroscepticism in ECE and EU-20 (Percentages, EES 2009/19) 42 Chapter 3 Fig. 1 Key issues faced by the EU from the perspective of citizens 60 Fig. 2 Qualifications considered important for immigrants 66 Fig. 3 Rejection of different groups of immigrants 67 Fig. 4 Sources of Euroscepticism 68 Fig. 5 Relationship between Islamophobic and Eurosceptic attitudes among voters of different parties 69 Fig. 6 Differences in Islamophobic and Eurosceptic attitudes between voters of right-wing populist parties and average citizens 70 xv xvi LIST OF FIGURES Fig. 7 The relationship between the percentage of Muslims in the overall population and the support for a Muslim immigration ban 72 Fig. 8 The moderating effect of the share of Muslims as a proportion of the total population on the Islamophobia-Euroscepticism Nexus 73 Chapter 4 Fig. 1 Approval for bailouts in times of crisis by different spatial levels 89 Fig. 2 Approval for bailouts in times of crisis by different spatial levels: country differences 90 Fig. 3 Willingness to pay into a solidarity fund 91 Fig. 4 Willingness to pay into a solidarity fund: country differences 92 Fig. 5 Approval for reduction of spatial differences by different spatial levels 95 Fig. 6 Approval for reduction of spatial differences by different spatial levels: country differences 96 Fig. 7 Where should territorial differences be reduced first and second? 97 Fig. 8 Where should territorial differences be reduced first? Country differences 98 Chapter 7 Fig. 1 General attitude of Polish society towards Poland’s EU membership 2004–2019 163 Fig. 2 Attitudes towards Poland’s EU membership in PiS electorate 2005–2019 164 Fig. 3 Attitudes towards Poland’s EU membership in PO electorate 2005–2019 165 Fig. 4 Attitudes of PiS and PO electorate towards European Integration, percentage of average answers 2013–2019 166 Fig. 5 Attitudes of PiS and PO electorate towards state’s sovereignty in the EU, percentage of average answers 2014–2016 166 Fig. 6 PiS and PO electorate’s attitudes on the Euro, percentage of average answers 2017–2018 167 Fig. 7 Visions of PiS and PO electorate about the future of Poland and the EU, percentage of average answers 2017–2018 167 LIST OF FIGURES xvii Chapter 8 Fig. 1 Voting on same-sex registered partnership in the Czech Republic 2005 and 2006 190 Fig. 2 Evolution of public opinion on LGBT rights in the Czech Republic (1998–2019) 192 Fig. 3 Evolution of public opinion on LGBT rights in Slovakia (2008–2017) 195 List of Tables Chapter 2 Table 1 Types of Euroscepticism in ECE countries 41 Table 2 Single- and Multi-level linear regression models explaining support for European Integration 44 Table 3 Question wording 50 Table 4 List of Eurosceptic Parties 51 Chapter 4 Table 1 Items and question wording: territorial solidarity 102 Table 2 Items and question wording: fiscal solidarity 103 Table 3 Country-specific item adaptations 105 Chapter 5 Table 1 Dimensions and indicators of illiberal politics 115 Table 2 Illiberal practices of governing parties in East Central Europe 128 xix xx LIST OF TABLES Chapter 6 Table 1 Recent infringement procedures in asylum and migration policy in the Czech Republic 145 Table 2 Recent infringement procedures in asylum and migration policy in Hungary 147 Chapter 10 Table 1 Rule of law-related infringement procedures against Hungary 240 Table 2 Rule of law-related infringement procedures launched against Hungary since 2010—trigger, the Commission’s critique and Hungary’s legal reactions 251 CHAPTER 1 Examining Illiberal Trends and Anti-EU Politics in East Central Europe from a Domestic Perspective: State of Research and Outline of the Book Lisa H. Anders and Astrid Lorenz 1 Introduction In East Central Europe (ECE), democracy and the rule of law are under siege, most notably in Hungary and Poland and, to a lesser extent, also in the Czech Republic and Slovakia. Elected majorities weakened the judiciary, limited minority rights and curtailed activities of independent media and several NGOs. As a result of these illiberal trends, some of the former democratisation and Europeanisation frontrunners are now regarded as prime examples of democratic backsliding. EU actors repeat- edly demanded to uphold EU foundational principles as enshrined in Article 2 of the Treaty on European Union (TEU). But the more they did L. H. Anders ( B ) · A. Lorenz Institute of Political Science, Leipzig University, Leipzig, Germany e-mail: l.anders@uni-leipzig.de A. Lorenz e-mail: astrid.lorenz@uni-leipzig.de © The Author(s) 2021 A. Lorenz and L. H. Anders (eds.), Illiberal Trends and Anti-EU Politics in East Central Europe , Palgrave Studies in European Union Politics, https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-54674-8_1 1 2 L. H. ANDERS AND A. LORENZ so, the more ECE governments reacted by accusing the EU of applying ill-defined rule of law concepts, by insisting on national sovereignty stip- ulated in Article 4(2) TEU and by emphasising the cultural differences between Eastern and Western Europe. Relations between Brussels on the one hand and Budapest, Warsaw, Prague and Bratislava on the other hand further deteriorated during the so-called refugee crisis. The Visegrád countries openly opposed commonly agreed EU law, namely the refugee relocation scheme. When EU actors demanded compliance, ECE politicians argued that they had to defend their electorate. They fiercely refused to comply and comple- mented their opposition with an increasingly harsh anti-EU rhetoric. As a result, opposition against particular EU policies turned into general EU criticism—a development we subsume under the keyword of anti-EU politics. As is also reflected in recent European case law, such problems and conflicts undermine the EU’s legal system and previous integration achievements. In 2018, the Court of Justice of the European Union (CJEU) noted that European values and norms, particularly the funda- mental right to an independent tribunal, can no longer be taken for granted in all EU member states. Referring to a Polish national, the CJEU ruled that judicial authorities in EU member states can now block the execution of a European arrest warrant if they consider that the indepen- dence of the judiciary in the issuing member state is no longer guaranteed (CJEU 2018). In 2020, a German Higher Regional Court refused for the first time to extradite a Polish suspect to his home country due to “profound doubts about the future independence of the Polish judiciary” (Bauomy 2020). Illiberal trends and anti-EU politics have the potential to undermine mutual trust among member states and to alter relations between the EU and some of its member states permanently, as well as shattering estab- lished theorising in EU studies. Hence, it is crucial to understand their domestic causes, context conditions, processes and consequences. This edited volume, therefore, aims to provide in-depth empirical knowledge of the background of rule of law problems and the open defiance of EU rules in ECE countries. To arrive at a more encompassing understanding of these phenomena, it brings together researchers from different disci- plines and with different theoretical perspectives on the illiberal trends and anti-EU politics in ECE countries. It contains qualitative case studies, comparative works and quantitative analyses of the societal, political and