In this article, we extend our understanding of fringe politics to include relational and thematic elements, namely, the relationship of far-right collective actors with their broader network and the claims made within it. Locating our analysis at the intersection of protest event and social network analysis, we focus on the far-right Movement for a Better Hungary (Jobbik) which, since late 2013, has committed to moderation. Analysing the protest events in which Jobbik took part and the types of claims upon which it has mobilized between 2009 and 2017, we examine whether there has been a corresponding distancing from extremist groups and radical claims – a finding that would indeed validate the substantive transformation of Jobbik. By focusing on often neglected relational and thematic aspects, the study provides new ways to analyse fringe collective actors, the relationship with their environment and the evolution of such a relationship over time.
Much of the literature on fringe political parties in post-communist Europe focused on the relationship with mainstream parties. Little is known about what happens at the fringes, what are the features of politics at the fringes and when this type of politics becomes mainstream. This special issue moves beyond the notion of the fringe versus mainstream dichotomy: it is more ‘granular’ in its approach and seeks to differentiate between different forms of ‘fringe’ parties. The contributions aim to explore how and whether the fringe in post-communist countries changes in an age of populism and illiberalism. They represent an important attempt to take the fringe as a feature of politics that is not necessarily transient or a manifestation of the ‘growing pains’ of post-communism.
South-East Europe presents a compelling agenda: a region that has challenged European identities, values and interests like no other at formative periods of modern history, and is now undergoing a set of complex transitions. It is a region made up of new and old European Union member states, as well as aspiring ones; early 'democratising' states and new post-communist regimes; states undergoing liberalising economic reforms, partially inspired by external forces, whilst coping with their own embedded nationalisms; and states obliged to respond to new and recurring issues of security, identity, well-being, social integration, faith and secularisation.This series examines issues of inheritance and adaptation. The disciplinary reach incorporates politics and international relations, modern history, economics, and political economy and sociology. It links the study of South-East Europe across a number of social sciences to European issues of democratisation and economic reform in the post-transition age. It addresses ideas as well as institutions; policies as well as processes. It will include studies of the domestic and foreign policies of single states, relations between states and peoples in the region, and between the region and beyond. The EU is an obvious reference point for current research on South-East Europe, but this series also highlights the importance of South-East Europe in its eastern context; the Caucuses; the Black Sea and the Middle East.
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