With the help of guest experts and politicians, in the podcast series of MCC’s Centre for Political Science we endeavor to analyze which actors are the real winners of the parliamentary and municipal elections taking place this year in different European countries and what exactly can be considered a real victory after the ballot counts.

Amid the growing uncertainty, a corruption scandal broke out that shook both the political sphere and the Slovenian electorate, making the situation of the largest governing party uncomfortable. However, seeing the close result, the opposition forces (prominently, the SDS) could not really benefit from the scandal. What is the Slovenian party system like? How do Slovenians choose from different parties? What was the campaign like? When can Europe’s Green Heart have a new government, and how stable will it be? Szabolcs Janik, senior researcher of the Center for Political Science (MCC) had the honor to discuss these and similarly interesting questions with professor Matevž Tomšič, lecturer at the School of Advanced Social Studies.

With the help of guest experts and politicians, in the podcast series of MCC’s Centre for Political Science we endeavor to analyze which actors are the real winners of the parliamentary and municipal elections taking place this year in different European countries and what exactly can be considered a real victory after the ballot counts.

The former coalition parties all saw their influence wane, while several traditional formations made surprising comebacks. The margin between the two leading actors is the narrowest since 1956. However, as our guest expert, Dr. Jaap van Slageren from Utrecht University pointed out: the biggest players have never been so small in Dutch politics, due to the electoral system based on fully proportional representation.

What were the key factors that ultimately led to the Schoof cabinet’s failure? Which issues are currently most pressing for Dutch society, and how have the political parties responded to these challenges? What do the geographic and demographic trends reveal about the historical, economic, or cultural factors shaping Dutch politics today? In our latest episode, we sought answers to these and other interesting questions.

With the help of guest experts and politicians, in the podcast series of MCC’s Centre for Political Science we endeavor to analyze which actors are the real winners of the parliamentary and municipal elections taking place this year in different European countries and what exactly can be considered a real victory after the ballot counts.

Our guest expert stresses that ANO outperformed other, rather radical opposition parties and consolidated support from voters leaning toward these groups, presenting himself as a unifying character.

ANO focused primarily on domestic economic and social issues, resonating with voters, while the governing parties prioritized foreign policy, which many perceived as disconnected from their everyday concerns.

If you’d like to learn more about the background of the 2025 Czech election — including the contesting parties, the campaign themes, as well as the electoral system and geography — be sure to check out the latest episode of the Votes &  Seats podcast.

With the help of guest experts and politicians, in the podcast series of MCC’s Centre for Political Science we endeavor to analyze which actors are the real winners of the parliamentary and municipal elections taking place this year in different European countries and what exactly can be considered a real victory after the ballot counts.

Nicolae Panfil - Program Director and Head of Promo-LEX

Szabolcs Janik (host) - Senior Researcher, Center for Political Science, MCC

With the help of guest experts and politicians, in the podcast series of MCC’s Centre for Political Science we endeavor to analyze which actors are the real winners of the parliamentary and municipal elections taking place this year in different European countries and what exactly can be considered a real victory after the ballot counts.

With the help of guest experts and politicians, in the podcast series of MCC’s Centre for Political Science we endeavor to analyze which actors are the real winners of the parliamentary and municipal elections taking place this year in different European countries and what exactly can be considered a real victory after the ballot counts.

What happened at the polls, what motivated the Poles to vote in such a large number? What role perception will Nawrocki have, how actively will he use his veto right? What dynamics can unfold on the left and on the right? Will anything change in the presidential position on Ukraine after Duda? How will Nawrocki navigate regional cooperation platforms, will he prefer the Three Seas Initiative, and/or will attempt to revive the Visegrad Four? These and similar questions are discussed in detail in the new episode of the Votes & Seats podcast series of the Centre for Political Science (MCC), where Szabolcs Janik had the honour to talk with professor Aleks Szczerbiak, head of department at the University of Sussex.

With the help of guest experts and politicians, in the podcast series of MCC’s Centre for Political Science we endeavor to analyze which actors are the real winners of the parliamentary and municipal elections taking place this year in different European countries and what exactly can be considered a real victory after the ballot counts.

What led to an early election this time? What were the key campaign topics? What was the stake of this election for the voters, what motivated them to go to the ballots? Are we witnessing a structural change of the Portuguese party system? When will Portugal have a new government? In the latest episode of the Votes & Seats podcast series, Szabolcs Janik, senior researcher of the Center for Political Science at MCC had the honor to discuss these and similar exciting questions with Susana Coroado, affiliated fellow of the Institute for Social Sciences at the University of Lisbon and Alexandre de Sousa Carvalho, researcher of the Center for Social Studies at the University of Coimbra.

With the help of guest experts and politicians, in the podcast series of MCC’s Centre for Political Science we endeavor to analyze which actors are the real winners of the parliamentary and municipal elections taking place this year in different European countries and what exactly can be considered a real victory after the ballot counts.

Our guest expert, Prof. Alexandra A. Iancu claims that the invalidation of the original election consolidated the sovereigntist camp, however, the end result of the re-run showed that the majority of Romanian voters see their country’s future within the Euro-Atlantic cooperation.

The political scientist sees no doubt shifts in party preferences, inasmuch as the historical moderate parties are loosing ground, while anti-system and anti-corruption political formations are becoming more and more popular.

• Can Nicușor Dan’s inauguration put an end to the years-long political instability in the country?
• Will there be a reorganization in the party system of Romania, or the status-quo survives the turmoil?
• What can be said about the voting preferences of the different layers of society?
• Will there be any political gesture towards ethnic Hungarians and Moldovan–Romanian dual citizens, whose votes made Dan’s victory possible?

Among many other thought-provoking issues, these are the topics we addressed in this episode of the Votes and Seats podcast.

• Alexandra A. Iancu

Professor, University of Bucharest

• Bálint L. Tóth

Researcher-lecturer, MCC Center for Political Science

With the help of guest experts and politicians, in the podcast series of MCC’s Centre for Political Science we endeavor to analyze which actors are the real winners of the parliamentary and municipal elections taking place this year in different European countries and what exactly can be considered a real victory after the ballot counts.

In May 2025, the Conclave has elected the American Cardinal Robert Francis Prevost as the 267th Bishop of Rome, the new pope of the Roman Catholic Church, and the head of Vatican City State, the Holy See.

Our guest expert, Mr. Marco Malaguti from Centro Studi Machiavelli claims that Pope Leo XIV is a compromise between the Latin American and the European cardinals, because, with his pragmatism, the first US-born pontiff can restore a “Catholic way of thinking” in the West.

The analyst considers the election of Pope Leo XIV an “oxygen mask” for Catholicism in contemporary western societies.

In the SPECIAL EDITION of the Votes&Seats podcast, we assess

• the balance of power and the advocacy potential of the different platforms within the Conclave
• what is the differentiate between “politician” and “spiritual” popes?
• what do progressivism and conservativism mean in ecclesiastical terms?
• and finally, what religious, political, and cultural legacy did late Pope Francis leave us?

With the help of guest experts and politicians, in the podcast series of MCC’s Centre for Political Science we endeavor to analyze which actors are the real winners of the parliamentary and municipal elections taking place this year in different European countries and what exactly can be considered a real victory after the ballot counts.

What was the parties’ strategy? What happened at the polls? What motivated the citizens to vote in such a large number? Does the increasingly visible East–West divide in voter behavior and preferences indicate a structural change in party competition and the party system? Who are the “winners” and “losers” of the election? What are the prospects for the right-wing populist AfD? How will the CDU-CSU and the SPD reach an agreement to form a government? How will the German–Hungarian bilateral relations develop under the new cabinet? In the new episode of the Votes & Seats podcast series of the Center for Political Science of Mathias Corvinus Collegium, Szabolcs Janik had the honor to discuss these and similar questions with Oliver W. Lembcke, professor of political science at the Ruhr University in Bochum and visiting fellow at MCC.

With the help of guest experts and politicians, in the podcast series of MCC’s Centre for Political Science we endeavor to analyze which actors are the real winners of the parliamentary and municipal elections taking place this year in different European countries and what exactly can be considered a real victory after the ballot counts.

Our guest expert pointed out that the internal cohesion of the governing coalition made Albin Kurti’s cabinet successful in completing a full 4-year term and winning the subsequent election. In the 2025 campaign, the governing Vetëvendosje party's rhetoric was not targeted against other political formations but towards business corporations and media outlets for their alleged interference in politics and state affairs. Kurti, in exchange, was criticized for having caused instability by the dismantling of parallel Serbian-Kosovan institutions in the areas of the country where ethnic Serbs give the majority, a governmental initiative that led to the EU introducing unfavorable measures against Kosovo – Mr. Sejdiu added.

Fancy knowing more about the social-political cleavages in the youngest state of the Balkans?

Interested in the current state-of-the-art of certain political aspirations aiming at the unification of Kosovo and Albania?

Tired of the newsportals’ black-and-white narratives and wanna get a more sophisticated opinion about the prospects of the Prishtina-Belgrade dialogue in light of these countries’ EU accession endeavors?

Then, here is your best chance to quench your thirst for a more complex knowledge about the political mosaic of Kosovo.

With the help of guest experts and politicians, in the podcast series of MCC’s Centre for Political Science we endeavor to analyze which actors are the real winners of the parliamentary and municipal elections taking place this year in different European countries and what exactly can be considered a real victory after the ballot counts.

What was the campaign like? What happened at the polls? Why is the turnout in legislative elections traditionally low in Romania (in contrast to presidential elections)? What is the problem with Georgescu’s first-round win, what do we know today? What are the prospects for a new government? Szabolcs Janik, senior researcher of the Centre for Political Science had the chance to discuss these and similar questions with Titus Techera, a political scientist and visiting fellow of MCC in the latest episode of the Votes & Seats podcast series.

With the help of guest experts and politicians, in the podcast series of MCC’s Centre for Political Science we endeavor to analyze which actors are the real winners of the parliamentary and municipal elections taking place this year in different European countries and what exactly can be considered a real victory after the ballot counts.

While the major opposition players stated that the ruling party’s policies were incompatible with the country’s Euro-Atlantic integration prospects, government officials blame EU decision-makers for the derailment of the integration process.

Our guest expert, Mr. Victor Kipiani from Geocase believes that the most plausible solution to get out of the crisis could be considering holding new elections. However, at the time of recording, that option seems to be unacceptable for Georgian Dream.

In our new episode, we are traveling to Georgia with the aim of understanding the battle of narratives in the Caucasian country after the October 2024 legislative election.

• Victor Kipiani - Chair, Geocase
• Bálint L. Tóth - Researcher, MCC Center for Political Sceince

With the help of guest experts and politicians, in the podcast series of MCC’s Centre for Political Science we endeavor to analyze which actors are the real winners of the parliamentary and municipal elections taking place this year in different European countries and what exactly can be considered a real victory after the ballot counts.

Mr. Nicolae Panfil from Promo-LEX claims that the referendum turned out to be a “double-edged sword” in the campaign of incumbent head-of-state Maia Sandu: it did boost the president’s pro-EU image, yet it also gave a momentum to the pro-Russia machinery in the country.

By now, Sandu’s Party of Action and Solidarity absorbed all political power and marginalized other pro-EU forces. They were overconfident in the campaign and did not build alliances with opposition actors or NGOs, nor did they communicate any concrete message about their political visions on the country’s future other than EU-accession – our guest expert added.

Meanwhile, the pro-Russia opposition could effectively capitalize on the poor people’s disappointment in the government by exploiting the different toolkit of hybrid warfare: disinformation, vote buying, pyramid-like political network building, and corruption – Mr. Panfil concluded.

Listen to our newest podcast for more details and exciting facts about the social, cultural, geographic, and demographic background of the campaign and the ballot.

With the help of guest experts and politicians, in the podcast series of MCC’s Centre for Political Science we endeavor to analyze which actors are the real winners of the parliamentary and municipal elections taking place this year in different European countries and what exactly can be considered a real victory after the ballot counts.

In the latest episode of Votes & Seats, we analyze the background, the circumstances and the consequences of LSDP’s considerable victory and the significant loss of parliamentary mandates of TS–LKD, in light of the presidential, EP, and parliamentary elections of 2024.

This time, we had on board as a guest expert Dr. Mindaugas Jurkynas, professor at the Department of Regional Studies at Vytautas Magnus University who helped us understand the bigger picture about Lithuanian politics.

Should you be interested in the most relevant social cleavages in contemporary Lithuania and their effect on the country’s party system as well as on the citizens’ voting preferences, here is your best chance to quench your thirst for knowledge by listening to our most recent podcast!

• Mindaugas Jurkynas

Professor, Department of Regional Studies, Vytautas Magnus University

• Bálint L. Tóth

Podcast editor, Researcher, MCC Center for Political Science

With the help of guest experts and politicians, in the podcast series of MCC’s Centre for Political Science we endeavor to analyze which actors are the real winners of the parliamentary and municipal elections taking place this year in different European countries and what exactly can be considered a real victory after the ballot counts.

As the expert pointed out: this election was not about political ideas but mere fighting among the parties for parliamentary representation. There were no coherent messages, no party programs communicated to the electorate. The politicians did not share their visions about the future, nor did they outline any concrete steps as for how to help Bulgaria end its constant political crisis.

Dr. Sabev stressed that due to unending spiral of early elections, Bulgarians are widely disengaged with politics. Yet, the decision-makers do not want to do a thing about that situation. The root cause of all the above must be the lack of a proper political class.  Instead, Bulgarian political actors are waiting for external drivers to lead the country out of the dark forest of ungovernability – our guest analyst concluded.

What can be said about the fairness of the election? How was it possible for a party to fall short from getting in the national legislation by only 27 votes? Are the Bulgarians heading towards yet another round of early elections? These are just a few of the interesting issues we touched upon in our latest episode.

With the help of guest experts and politicians, in the podcast series of MCC’s Centre for Political Science we endeavor to analyze which actors are the real winners of the parliamentary and municipal elections taking place this year in different European countries and what exactly can be considered a real victory after the ballot counts.

On 29 September 2024,  Austrians went to the polls to elect the members of the 28th National Council, the lower house of the country's bicameral parliament.

The Freedom Party (FPÖ) celebrated an unprecedented yet foreseeable victory in a campaign dominated by immigration issues and worries about the economy. The national conservative party’s plans to introduce firm rules against illegal immigration resonated with a considerable part of the society, the assistant professor explains.

Our guest expert claims that the outgoing government of the center-right People's Party (ÖVP) and the progressivist Greens lost considerable support amid rising inflation, as well as skyrocketing housing, electricity, and fuel prices. However, the slow decline of the biggest opposition player, the Social Democratic Party (SPÖ) has to do with the general loss of interest of the people about the emancipation endeavors of different social/gender/ethnic minorities, which is a global phenomenon, Schölhammer adds.

• Care to know more about contemporary social, economic, and political tendencies going on at our “Brother in law’s?”
• Interested in why our guest analyst claims that Hungary’s western neighbor has always been a culturally center-right country?
• Want to know why September 2024 marks the end of an era in the county of winter sports and Alpine traditions?

Give a listen to the Austria episode of the Votes & Seats podcast, hosted by researcher-lecturer Bálint L. Tóth.

With the help of guest experts and politicians, in the podcast series of MCC’s Centre for Political Science we endeavor to analyze which actors are the real winners of the parliamentary and municipal elections taking place this year in different European countries and what exactly can be considered a real victory after the ballot counts.

What motivated Macron in calling for a snap election? What was the campaign like? What was the stake of the election for the parties and the electorate? What happened between the two rounds? Who will form the new government? What are the prospects for Le Pen’s party? In the new episode of the Votes & Seats podcast series of the Center for Political Science (MCC), Szabolcs Janik discussed these and similar questions with Alexandre Pesey, founder and executive director of the Institut de Formation Politique, a conservative training Institute in Paris.

With the help of guest experts and politicians, in the podcast series of MCC’s Centre for Political Science we endeavor to analyze which actors are the real winners of the parliamentary and municipal elections taking place this year in different European countries and what exactly can be considered a real victory after the ballot counts.

In the new podcast episode of the Center for Political Science (MCC), Szabolcs Janik (senior researcher) had the honor of discussing the recent UK general election with Paul Gilfillan, senior lecturer in sociology at the Queen Margaret University in Edinburgh. From the current episode, you can learn about, among other things, the campaign, the key messages and topics communicated by the parties, the interpretation of the results, voter behavior, the winners and losers of the election, the prospects of the government as well as whether we are witnessing a durable restructuring of the UK party system.

With the help of guest experts and politicians, in the podcast series of MCC’s Centre for Political Science we endeavor to analyze which actors are the real winners of the parliamentary and municipal elections taking place this year in different European countries and what exactly can be considered a real victory after the ballot counts.

With the help of guest experts and politicians, in the podcast series of MCC’s Centre for Political Science we endeavor to analyze which actors are the real winners of the parliamentary and municipal elections taking place this year in different European countries and what exactly can be considered a real victory after the ballot counts.

In the latest episode of MCC’s Votes & Seats podcast series, Szabolcs Janik (senior researcher, Center for Political Science) had the honor to discuss the results and consequences of the Belgian federal election with Bjarn Eck, PhD-researcher at the Université Libre de Bruxelles. According to our guest, the most surprising development was the weaker-than-expected performance of Vlaams Belang (VB), a Flemish right-wing nationalist party, strongly advocating for the independence of Flanders. It was also yet to be seen whether the cordon sanitaire erected around VB by mainstream parties would last after the election. It seemingly will, as the absolute winner of the federal and Flemish elections, the New Flemish Alliance (N-VA) ruled out the possibility of governing together with Tom Van Grieken’s party. Instead, as Mr. Eck argues, N-VA is likely to start coalition talks with the Flemish Christian democrats (CD&V), the conservative liberal Reformist Movement as the winner in Walloon, and a centrist power called Les Engagés also from Walloon. From our current podcast episode, you can also learn about the key campaign topics and party positions on them, or how different elections together make up the overall Belgian political landscape.

With the help of guest experts and politicians, in the podcast series of MCC’s Centre for Political Science we endeavor to analyze which actors are the real winners of the parliamentary and municipal elections taking place this year in different European countries and what exactly can be considered a real victory after the ballot counts.

Looking at the election results, the political sociologist calls our attention to the unequivocal decline of the socialist and neoliberal parties in Bulgaria. This marks the downcome of the citizens’ illusions too. Dr. Mihailova explains that in exchange, parties with clear identities managed to increase their electorate (e.g. the ethnic Turkish DPS party or the anti-establishment ITN movement). The associate professor also stresses that the proportion of the nationalist electorate has reached the share of the pro-EU, pro-NATO voter base in Bulgaria. This should be seen as a warning, the analyst comments.

As for the record low turnout, according to Dr. Mihailova, the silence of voters is another flagrant exclamation mark showing that the moral, the social, and the emotional relationship between political parties and the Bulgarian citizens is broken for good. That connection has to be rebuilt in order to put an end to the constant political apathy. The way out of the crisis will not come from abroad but must be found in Bulgaria, the expert concludes.

For further mind-blowing facts and interesting theories, give a listen to our podcast on the 2024 Bulgarian snap parliamentary election.

• Katia Mihailova

Associate Professor (UNWE Department of Economic Sociology)

• Bálint L. Tóth

Researcher (MCC Center for Political Science)

With the help of guest experts and politicians, in the podcast series of MCC’s Centre for Political Science we endeavor to analyze which actors are the real winners of the parliamentary and municipal elections taking place this year in different European countries and what exactly can be considered a real victory after the ballot counts.

In the latest Votes & Seats podcast episode, Szabolcs Janik, senior researcher of the Center for Political Science (MCC) had the chance to discuss the EU-level results and the potential political consequences with professor Emanuele Massetti from the University of Trento. Our discussant argues that the EPP, ECR and ID party families can be deemed the winners of the election, the S&D faces a seat allocation similar to 2019, while the Greens and the liberals (Renew Europe) experienced substantial losses. In Massetti’s opinion, the European Green Deal, the issue of further EU integration, the war in Ukraine and immigration could be the topics on which a significant share of voters disagreed with the underlying national parties belonging to the mentioned center-left and left-wing political powers. At the same time, he expects that the increased vote share and seat number of right-wing powers in the EP are not likely to change the earlier domination of mainstream, centrist party groups, but the EPP will be a ‘kingmaker’ in the European Parliament. Our latest podcast episode also touches upon the post-election political landscape in Italy and the possible future fate of the ECR and ID groups in light of the recent EP election.

With the help of guest experts and politicians, in the podcast series of MCC’s Centre for Political Science we endeavor to analyze which actors are the real winners of the parliamentary and municipal elections taking place this year in different European countries and what exactly can be considered a real victory after the ballot counts.

Dr. Marko Troshanovski, president of the Skopje-based think-tank Institute for Democracy (IDSCS), explains us that the main contest was between the then ruling Social Democrats, SDSM, and the major opposition party, the right-wing VMRO DPMNE. The latter one had a landslide victory by gathering 45% of the vote. The presidential election was also won by the VMRO-DPMNE candidate, Dr. Gordana Siljanovska-Davkova.

Dr. Troshanovski provides us a comprehensive insight into the major issues of and the interesting facts about the two contests, with special regards to the major divides in the society.

If you’re eager to learn more about the importance and consequences of the elections in terms of North Macedonia’s EU accession perspectives, fight against corruption, and rule of law endeavors, give a listen to the latest episode of the Votes & Seats podcast.

With the help of guest experts and politicians, in the podcast series of MCC’s Centre for Political Science we endeavor to analyze which actors are the real winners of the parliamentary and municipal elections taking place this year in different European countries and what exactly can be considered a real victory after the ballot counts.

In our newest election podcast, you can get a genuine insight into the logic of party competition, key campaign issues (such as economic challenges, European issues or emigration) and party positions, voter attitudes, all these embedded in the context of the coming European voting. Moreover, we also had the opportunity to discuss the future chances of the new HDZ-Homeland Movement coalition, announced on 8 May 2024.

With the help of guest experts and politicians, in the podcast series of MCC’s Centre for Political Science we endeavor to analyze which actors are the real winners of the parliamentary and municipal elections taking place this year in different European countries and what exactly can be considered a real victory after the ballot counts.

• Jaroslav Ušiak

Professor, Vice-Dean for International and Public Relations, Matej Bel University

• Bálint L. Tóth

Podcast editor, Researcher, MCC Center for Political Science

With the help of guest experts and politicians, in the podcast series of MCC’s Centre for Political Science we endeavor to analyze which actors are the real winners of the parliamentary and municipal elections taking place this year in different European countries and what exactly can be considered a real victory after the ballot counts.

With the help of guest experts and politicians, in the podcast series of MCC’s Centre for Political Science we endeavor to analyze which actors are the real winners of the parliamentary and municipal elections taking place this year in different European countries and what exactly can be considered a real victory after the ballot counts.

With the help of guest experts and politicians, in the podcast series of MCC’s Centre for Political Science we endeavor to analyze which actors are the real winners of the parliamentary and municipal elections taking place this year in different European countries and what exactly can be considered a real victory after the ballot counts.

With the help of guest experts and politicians, in the podcast series of MCC’s Centre for Political Science we endeavor to analyze which actors are the real winners of the parliamentary and municipal elections taking place this year in different European countries and what exactly can be considered a real victory after the ballot counts.

The Sejm election held on 15 October 2023 brought several surprises. In the first place, an all-time-high turnout which seemingly benefitted the opposition powers, in particular Third Way and Civic Coalition. And while PiS managed to win the election as a separate party, its only imaginable prospective coalition partner, Confederation received way less votes than foreseen by public opinion polls. Looking at the final allocation of mandates, Civic Coalition, Third Way and the Left will have a comfortable majority in the Sejm with 248 seats ensured if they reach a coalition agreement in the next months. What happened at the polls? What is the most likely scenario now? What will president Andrzej Duda do next? If a new Tusk cabinet is formed, what will its relations with the Orbán cabinet be like in the future, and how will it affect the Visegrad Group? Researcher of the Centre for Political Science at MCC, Szabolcs Janik had the honour of discussing these and similar questions in the Centre’s latest Votes & Seats podcast episode with Tomasz Grosse, professor of the Faculty of Political Science and International Studies at the University of Warsaw. 

With the help of guest experts and politicians, in the podcast series of MCC’s Centre for Political Science we endeavor to analyze which actors are the real winners of the parliamentary and municipal elections taking place this year in different European countries and what exactly can be considered a real victory after the ballot counts.

With the help of guest experts and politicians, in the podcast series of MCC’s Centre for Political Science we endeavor to analyze which actors are the real winners of the parliamentary and municipal elections taking place this year in different European countries and what exactly can be considered a real victory after the ballot counts.

• what attributes made Mr. Núñez Feijóo the right prime minister candidate of PP
• what were the strength and weaknesses in the campaign of the socialists
• what could have been the reason for the weak performances of the national conservative Vox and the far-left electoral platform SUMAR, as well as
• how significant is the role of pro-independence regional political formations in Spanish party politics

For our previous episodes please visit: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=29q0mdf1elA&list=PLDjYcVrHZxt-_lRzYiNb9lXBLLiAE27iZ

With the help of guest experts and politicians, in the podcast series of MCC’s Centre for Political Science we endeavor to analyze which actors are the real winners of the parliamentary and municipal elections taking place this year in different European countries and what exactly can be considered a real victory after the ballot counts.

With the help of guest experts and politicians, in the podcast series of MCC’s Centre for Political Science we endeavor to analyze which actors are the real winners of the parliamentary and municipal elections taking place this year in different European countries and what exactly can be considered a real victory after the ballot counts.

In the latest Votes & Seats podcast episode, Szabolcs Janik (Centre for Political Science, MCC) had the honour to discuss the Turkish elections and their consequences with Bilgehan Öztürk, researcher of the Ankara-based think tank SETA. From the podcast episode you can learn about, among other things, the factors that helped Erdoğan and AKP, the key campaign topics, which parties can be considered the winners and losers of the election, why it was vital for Erdoğan to achieve a majority in the legislation with his party alliance, or what challenges the re-elected president faces in domestic politics, the economy and in foreign affairs.

With the help of guest experts and politicians, in the podcast series of MCC’s Centre for Political Science we endeavor to analyze which actors are the real winners of the parliamentary and municipal elections taking place this year in different European countries and what exactly can be considered a real victory after the ballot counts.

Our guest expert, Dr. Mariyan K. Sabev from the Center for the Study of Democracy explains that the narrow victory of former prime minister Boyko Borisov’s right-wing GERB—SDS was no surprise for Bulgarians. However, the conservative alliance secured only 5 parliamentary seats more vis-à-vis the liberal-conservative electoral coalition of We Continue the Change and Democratic Bulgaria, headed by ex-premier Kiril Petkov. The anti-status quo ITN and the far-right Revival seem to be the biggest winners by gaining 11 and 10 mandates more, respectively, compared to the previous election. Consequently, the Bulgarian party system remains fragmented, our guest analyst says.

None of the political parties believed that this election would bring any significant change to Bulgarian politics, therefore, they did not invest considerable efforts in the campaign. Nevertheless, Mr. Borisov has become a very important balancing figure as most of his strongholds (small and midsize municipalities) are still in place, even if he did not manage to enlarge his electoral base. On the other hand, the two big cities, Sofia and Polvdiv, remain the supporters of the new political parties, whereas the country's ethnic/religious minorities and Bulgarians living in Türkiye normally vote for DPS. Our guest expert adds that the only real change the April 2023 election brought was the debuting of the recently modified voting mechanism that introduced a mixed system of digital and paper-based methods.

Dr. Sabev concludes that the country’s political crisis remains constant as long as the Bulgarians as a nation keep being more divided then ever before.

With the help of guest experts and politicians, in the podcast series of MCC’s Centre for Political Science we endeavor to analyze which actors are the real winners of the parliamentary and municipal elections taking place this year in different European countries and what exactly can be considered a real victory after the ballot counts.

As our guest specialist Mr. Veikko Isotalo, doctoral researcher at the Faculty of Social Sciences of the University of Helsinki pointed out, the election campaign primarily focused on economic issues, mostly related to the state of the national debt and budget deficit. Therefore, a new government potentially led by a self-proclaimed "fiscal conservative" Petteri Orpo would formulate a restrictive budget with reduced welfare state expenses. As far as outgoing premier Ms. Sanna Marin form the Social Democratic Party is considered, according to Mr. Isotalo, she has become an international figure primarily due to her government’s steps during the Covid-19 pandemic and the war in Ukraine, with special regards to the country’s U-turn in applying for NATO-membership.

As our guest expert explained, the biggest surprise in the April 2023 election was that there were no surprises. Still, led by Ms. Marin the Social Democratic Party successfully increased its popularity in the expense of other centrist and leftists/liberal political actors. As for the third original member of the historical Finnish political troika, the Centre Party (KESK) did not win in any constituencies this April. The political scientist stresses that the decreasing popularity of the predominantly conservative-liberal agrarian party is due to its role in the outgoing government coalition, the demographic changes in the Finnish society, and the rise of the nationalist Finns Party.

What explains the rise of the Finns Party? What were the strength and weaknesses of outgoing prime minister Sanna Marin, and did her cabinet’s alleged scandals play any role in the parliamentary elections in April 2023? Our guest elections specialist from the University of Helsinki helps you answer all these questions – among many others – if you listen to the newest episode of the Votes & Seats election analysis podcast.

With the help of guest experts and politicians, in the podcast series of MCC’s Centre for Political Science we endeavor to analyze which actors are the real winners of the parliamentary and municipal elections taking place this year in different European countries and what exactly can be considered a real victory after the ballot counts.

With the help of guest experts and politicians, in the podcast series of MCC’s Centre for Political Science we endeavor to analyze which actors are the real winners of the parliamentary and municipal elections taking place this year in different European countries and what exactly can be considered a real victory after the ballot counts.

With the help of guest experts and politicians, in the podcast series of MCC’s Centre for Political Science we endeavor to analyze which actors are the real winners of the parliamentary and municipal elections taking place this year in different European countries and what exactly can be considered a real victory after the ballot counts.

In the latest episode of the Votes & Seats podcast series, Szabolcs Janik had the honour of discussing the background and results of the recent Israeli election with Ofir Haivry, vice president of the Herzl Institute, co-founder of the Edmund Burke Foundation and current visiting fellow at the Danube Institute. In the podcast episode, you will learn, among other things, that Netanyahu may rightly see himself as the winner of the election, but at the same time he is more exposed to his allies than he previously hoped. Haivry sees a good chance that the new cabinet will survive until the next election, and believes that Hungary and Israel can go hand in hand on key international issues.

With the help of guest experts and politicians, in the podcast series of MCC’s Centre for Political Science we endeavor to analyze which actors are the real winners of the parliamentary and municipal elections taking place this year in different European countries and what exactly can be considered a real victory after the ballot counts.

Frederiksen’s center-left bloc came out on top securing the most votes. The ruling Social Democrats achieved their best result in two decades, yet they declared a wish to expand political participation outside the confines of the conventional Danish bloc politics. Dr. Skov stresses that Frederiksen’s aim to form a moderate minority government with parties from both blocs might be a tool for responsibility sharing in tough times.

While the center-left Social Liberals obtained one of their worst ever performance, libertarian Liberal Alliance gathered a lot more votes then last time. This is, because the Danish welfare state has come to a turning point and one can witness major transitions in the society primarily due to 21st century challenges such as immigration, climate change, and expanding urbanization – the guest expert argues. Traditional existential values are being questioned and the political formations either keep pace with the economically left-leaning but culturally more conservative majority of the society or retreat to the small-party status.

For further details on the performance of old and new political actors, the rivalry on the right, and the parties’ attitudes towards the EU, please listen to the latest Votes&Seats episode about the early legislative election in Denmark hosted by Bálint L. Tóth from the MCC Center for Political Science.

With the help of guest experts and politicians, in the podcast series of MCC’s Centre for Political Science we endeavor to analyze which actors are the real winners of the parliamentary and municipal elections taking place this year in different European countries and what exactly can be considered a real victory after the ballot counts.

The analysts agreed that the current political crisis is unprecedented in the history of the Republic of Bulgaria. The short-lived pro-EU and pro-NATO cabinet led by Petkov’s newly established We Continue the Change party and its allies was overthrown in a no-confidence vote by the major opposition parties and a former coalition partner, the anti-graft ITN. Ms. Kirilova underlines that Petkov's party could not maintain its allies due to the lack of expertise of how to control a coalition of political formations with often conflicting interests. Dr. Pietrzak adds that no heads-of-government can exercise real control over the country whose political-economic system has been tailored by former prime minister Boyko Borisov. The expert further claims that no political actors in Bulgaria can communicate to the electorate as effectively and professionally as Borisov does.

Thus, the right-wing opposition party of Borisov (GERB–SDS) won the early election with 24.5% of the vote. Most parties of the outgoing government coalition used the same populistic messages as their right-wing opponent, yet faced considerable losses. The most significant decrease in support was registered by showman Slavi Trifonov’s ITN, the winner of the June 2021 early ballot. The far-right Revival registered a huge success with 9.8%, thus radical and pro-Russia voices will be represented again the Bulgarian legislative body. According to Ms. Kirilova, the reason for this is that while the latter party operates with simple messages that appeal to the ordinary people, the former one communicates complex and divisive ideas that the average citizens don’t want to hear.

What are the major dividing lines in Bulgarian politics? What could be the reason for the low turnout? And what could be the key to success of right-wing strongman Mr. Borisov? Jump with us into the exciting and mysterious waters of Bulgarian politics in the latest edition of the Votes & Seats podcast series.

With the help of guest experts and politicians, in the podcast series of MCC’s Centre for Political Science we endeavor to analyze which actors are the real winners of the parliamentary and municipal elections taking place this year in different European countries and what exactly can be considered a real victory after the ballot counts.

Mr. Hasanović claimed that the Bosnian party system is missing ideological pluralization with such phenomenon being traceable only within certain political parties of distinct ethnic groups. Even the nominally multiethnic parties’ reach is limited exclusively to either the Bosniak (Muslim), Serb (Orthodox) or Croat (Catholic) electorate within the individual regions. Transethnic voting is almost non-existent: the parties either have to satisfy the ethnic majority’s demands, or they necessarily shall form a coalition with openly ethnic parties – should they not wish to remain in opposition. Mr. Sušić added that most political players in Bosnia cannot be systematized and differentiated based on the main ideologies and the classic right-to-left spectrum.

The guest analysts stressed that each constituent ethnic group of Bosnia-Herzegovina has divergent and almost antagonistic political aspirations as for the country’s future. As far as the constitutional system is concerned, the general goal of the Bosniak population is keeping the status quo, while the Croats principally strive for the creation of their own entity or electoral constituency, meanwhile the major Serb parties (with their often separatist rhetoric) are constantly looking at transferring further powers from central political bodies to the Serb sub-state entity. The experts further highlighted that neither social issues nor national security concerns were addressed by the candidates, however, EU integration endeavors were strongly supported by all players during the campaign.

Listen to the Votes & Seats podcast series’ latest edition for further interesting details about Europe’s undoubtedly most colorful country’s current political processes!

With the help of guest experts and politicians, in the podcast series of MCC’s Centre for Political Science we endeavor to analyze which actors are the real winners of the parliamentary and municipal elections taking place this year in different European countries and what exactly can be considered a real victory after the ballot counts.

According to Ms. Saltini, the considerable absenteeism from voting was due to fact that the electorate did not see any viable leftist and liberal political players, plus people were fed up with the “independent technocrats” and the old political elite that made part in Mr. Mario Draghi’s National Unity Government that collapsed in July 2022. The expert adds that the key to the success of Fratelli d'Italia was that the party coherently remained in opposition in the past years and it offered solutions to the average Italians' current difficulties. Ms. Saltini concludes that the Italians are by nature more conservative and traditionalist, that is why they support a right-wing coalition if they have the chance to elect their political representatives.

Our guest analyst further explains that the summer election campaign was quite unusual, because it happened in the general vacation season. The parties and coalitions were the protagonists of the campaign, with their well-elaborated election programs being in the forefront of the debates. Yet the candidates communicated with extremely simple messages to their electorate interpreting the election as a choice between “good and evil”.

This podcast is edited and hosted by Mr. Bálint L. TÓTH, researching lecturer of the Mathias Corvinus Collegium’s Center for Political Science.

With the help of guest experts and politicians, in the podcast series of MCC’s Centre for Political Science we endeavor to analyze which actors are the real winners of the parliamentary and municipal elections taking place this year in different European countries and what exactly can be considered a real victory after the ballot counts.

What happened at the ballot boxes? What were the key campaign issues? What comes next, when will Sweden have a new government, and will it include the Sweden Democrats? What changes can the Sweden Democrats’ electoral success bring along in the whole Swedish party system and specifically on the right? The current episode of the Votes & Seats podcast series addresses such questions. Szabolcs Janik, researcher of the Centre for Political Science at MCC had the honour to talk with Dr. Kjetil Duvold, associate professor in political science at Dalarna University.

With the help of guest experts and politicians, in the podcast series of MCC’s Centre for Political Science we endeavor to analyze which actors are the real winners of the parliamentary and municipal elections taking place this year in different European countries and what exactly can be considered a real victory after the ballot counts.

With the help of guest experts and politicians, in the podcast series of MCC’s Centre for Political Science we endeavor to analyze which actors are the real winners of the parliamentary and municipal elections taking place this year in different European countries and what exactly can be considered a real victory after the ballot counts.

Our guest expert, Dr. Miro Haček* from the University of Ljubljana, stressed that even if western media portrays the Freedom Movement as green liberalist, Mr. Golob’s formation has currently no clear identity and ideologies. However, it is most likely that the leftist parties will be the Freedom Movement’s coalition partners. Resigning prime minister Janša has lost the election, but his party has gained three more parliamentary seats compared to the previous election. Thus, the biggest losers of the April 2022 election were the parties of the old left, as Mr. Golob’s newly formed movement has successfully collected the votes of their electorate, so that none of the former center-left formations was able to jump the 4 per cent parliamentary threshold.

*Dr. Haček serves as Professor and Head of the Department of Political Science at the Faculty of Social Sciences. In 2018, he was elected as the President of Central European Political Science Association (CEPSA).

With the help of guest experts and politicians, in the podcast series of MCC’s Centre for Political Science we endeavor to analyze which actors are the real winners of the parliamentary and municipal elections taking place this year in different European countries and what exactly can be considered a real victory after the ballot counts.

Aleksandar Vučić has won a second term as president, and his main presidential challenger, retired general Zdravko Ponoš, gathered only 18 percent of votes cast.

Vučić’s Serbian Progressive Party (SNS) mastered the most votes at the parliamentary election, although, it has lost its majority in both the National Assembly of Serbia and the capital of Belgrade. Therefore, the party will most presumably be forced to enter into coalitions with smaller political formations. A long-time coalition partner to SNS, the Socialist Party of Serbia gained around 11-12% of the vote, significantly improving its 2020 result. The “United for Serbia” coalition, the strongest opposition option, won around 13-14%. At the time of recording the podcast, the Alliance of Vojvodina Hungarians managed to gain 5 mandates in the National Parliament in Belgrade.

How did the Russian-Ukrainian war resonate in the election campaign and what were the most successful messages of the parties? What similarities could be identified among the current Hungarian and Serbian politics and what directions should Mr. Vučić turn to in light of the ongoing armed conflict in Eastern Europe? These are the main questions we address with our guest analyst in the newest episode of the expert analysis of the MCC Center for Political Science.

With the help of guest experts and politicians, in the podcast series of MCC’s Centre for Political Science we endeavor to analyze which actors are the real winners of the parliamentary and municipal elections taking place this year in different European countries and what exactly can be considered a real victory after the ballot counts.

Leftist, center-right, environmentalist, socialist and liberal opposition parties decided on running together on a common list, with a common candidate for prime minister. Yet, the opposition formations together have lost almost 900,000 opposition voters compared to 2018, when they ran individually.

For further details, please listen to the latest edition of the Votes and Seats podcast series.

With the help of guest experts and politicians, in the podcast series of MCC’s Centre for Political Science we endeavor to analyze which actors are the real winners of the parliamentary and municipal elections taking place this year in different European countries and what exactly can be considered a real victory after the ballot counts.

The snap election was called for due to the rejection of the 2022 state budget as the left-wing parties joined the right-wing ones in voting against the proposal. The center-left Socialist Party of Prime Minister António Costa secured an unexpected majority in the Assembly of the Republic obtaining around 42% of the vote, while its main opponent, the liberal-conservative Social Democratic Party slightly underperformed the surveys and gathered around 29%. As a new phenomenon, the right-wing populist CHEGA saw an increase in popularity and finished in third place. 

With the help of guest experts and politicians, in the podcast series of MCC’s Centre for Political Science we endeavor to analyze which actors are the real winners of the parliamentary and municipal elections taking place this year in different European countries and what exactly can be considered a real victory after the ballot counts.

Launched just two months before the election, the centrist anti-graft party We Continue the Change (PP) won the most seats with 25.7% of the votes, and has started negotiations to form a government after its surprise victory. According to Ms. Kirilova, the support of the other protest parties will not be enough for PP to form a solid majority, however, a possible collaboration with the socialist BSP would question the credibility of all the anti-graft formations that were founded in recent years with the very aim to remove the old political elite of Bulgaria from power. The elections expert highlighted that while by the first round of the legislative election, the 2020 anti-corruption demonstrations led to the defeat of the ruling center-right GERB party, the atmosphere of protests was not able to gain a new momentum after the unsuccessful government formation attempts during the spring and the summer of 2021.

The first round of the country’s presidential election took place on the same day as the legislative one, however, as no candidate was able to receive a majority of the vote, a runoff was held on 21 November, with incumbent head-of-state Rumen Radev being able to win against university professor Anastas Gerdzhikov.

Should you be interested in the geopolitical context of the November 2021 elections in Bulgaria, and in the programs of the parties and candidates that ran in the ballot, we highly recommend you to listen to the latest edition of the Votes & Seats podcast series.

*Neli Kirilova is a Bulgarian international relations and security policies expert. She has been involved in various election processes as member of an OSCE observer team or local electoral committees both in Bulgaria and abroad. Ms. Kirilova is a PhD candidate at the Corvinus University of Budapest and a PhD Fellow at the European Security and Defense College. Ms. Kirilova’s main field of research is geopolitical competition in the Black Sea region. 

With the help of guest experts and politicians, in the podcast series of MCC’s Centre for Political Science we endeavor to analyze which actors are the real winners of the parliamentary and municipal elections taking place this year in different European countries and what exactly can be considered a real victory after the ballot counts.

The incumbent ANO 2011 party remained the single largest party after the election, but it lost its coalition potential. The former supporters of Prime Minister Babiš, the historical Czech Social Democratic Party and the Communist Party of Bohemia and Moravia failed to pass the threshold and fell out of the House. Two electoral alliances, the conservative Spolu (Together) and the liberal Pirates and Mayors won more than half of the seats, and agreed that they would like to govern jointly under the leadership of the Civic Democratic Party, Petr Fiala. The hospitalisation of President Zeman and his intention to first ask Babiš to try to build a sufficient majority on his behalf may prolong government formation. In principle, ANO could team up with the Freedom and Direct Democracy, the radical party of Okamura, and detach one or two parties from the conservative or liberal alliance. However, if the latter remains adamant to work together, Babiš has no chance to keep his position as prime minister.

Should Spolu and the Pirates and Mayors govern together, they may find it very difficult to maintain their internal stability, to preserve credits with the mainstream European parties and institutions, while successfully representing Czech national interests. One thing is certain though: if they form the new Czech government, it will be far less interested in strengthening the Visegrad platform, as these political parties have been critical of the Budapest-Warsaw dominance of the V4 cooperation.

With the help of guest experts and politicians, in the podcast series of MCC’s Centre for Political Science we endeavor to analyze which actors are the real winners of the parliamentary and municipal elections taking place this year in different European countries and what exactly can be considered a real victory after the ballot counts.

With the help of guest experts and politicians, in the podcast series of MCC’s Centre for Political Science we endeavor to analyze which actors are the real winners of the parliamentary and municipal elections taking place this year in different European countries and what exactly can be considered a real victory after the ballot counts.

Our guest expert highlights that due to the decreasing interest towards foreign and strategic affairs, the nationalist opposition parties faced a significant loss of popularity, while center-left and liberal systemic parties (also supposedly backed by the government) seemed to benefit from the social and economic issues that dominated the campaign.

Mr. Bendarjevskiy explains us why this legislative election was even more problematic than the previous ones. There were allegations of widespread electoral fraud, and the extended election procedure helped government authorities and state-owned companies to mobilize employees to vote. Additionally, the country analyst state that from 10 up to 30% of the vote could have been “stolen” amid the newly introduced electronic voting.

If you would like to get some information over the possible composition of the new government, if you would like to know why the opposition activist Alexei Navalny’s “Smart Voting” initiative did not turn to be effective, and if you are interested in what might be the key to the success of the new systemic parties, click on one of the links below and give a listen to our latest podcast.

*Mr. Bendarjevskiy was born in Belarus. He studied History, Media and Communications at the University of Pécs, and frequented a Political Science formation at the University of Leicester (UK). Mr Bendarjevskiy is completing his PhD in geopolitics at the University of Pécs. His topic is the integration processes in the post-Soviet region. Since June 2021, Mr. Bendarjevskiy is the Director of Research at Danube Institute.

With the help of guest experts and politicians, in the podcast series of MCC’s Centre for Political Science we endeavor to analyze which actors are the real winners of the parliamentary and municipal elections taking place this year in different European countries and what exactly can be considered a real victory after the ballot counts.

After the unexceptional 8 years in government, the centre right parties were defeated, and the earlier coalition of the Labour, the Centre and the Socialist Left parties may return to power. This time, however, the Labour will not be in a dominant position, thus the expected prime minister, Jonas Gahr Støre will be more dependent on the will of the coalition partners. The negotiating parties have disagreements over the wealth tax, climate taxes, rural policies, and EU relations. With the right of centre opposition and the growing far-left in opposition and the smaller, the Labour will need a careful balancing to maintain government stability for the next parliamentary term. The leader of the Progress Party resigned after 15 years, and the party lost its third position at the election. The Christian Democratic Party fell out of parliament, while the formerly Maoist Red Party went up from 1 to 8 seats in the legislature. A new, single-issue party, the Patient Focus entered parliament for the first time with one representative from Norway’s northernmost region of Finnmark. The small parties will make no major impact on the legislative process.

The Norwegian-EU relations are unlikely to change, and the dispute between the two respective governments over the suspension of Norwegian Fund support to Hungary will certainly remain unresolved.

With the help of guest experts and politicians, in the podcast series of MCC’s Centre for Political Science we endeavor to analyze which actors are the real winners of the parliamentary and municipal elections taking place this year in different European countries and what exactly can be considered a real victory after the ballot counts.

Moldova has been through many crises, and the rather calm and transparent 11 July 2021 ballot took place in an atmosphere of political deadlock. In our discussion, we address the international observers’ concerns over the impartiality of the Moldovan election authorities and over the transparency of campaign contributions. Our guest expert cites the major reforms most Moldovans are asking for, and we also go through the actual political narratives and popular campaign themes that characterized the election process this summer in the deeply polarized Moldovan society. 

Through a thought-provoking reasoning, Dr. Putină comes to the conclusion that this snap election could be the beginning of a new era in Moldovan parliamentary politics. If you would like to learn the basis of our guest expert’s aforementioned claim, it is time to give a listen to the Moldova edition of the Votes & Seats interview series.

*Dr. Putină serves as associate professor at the Department of Political and Administrative Sciences at the State University of Moldova. She holds the position of Vice Dean at the Faculty of International Relations, Political Science, and Administrative Studies at the same institution. Dr. Putină is the author of numerous English and Rumanian language academic papers in the fields of ethnic minority and migration policies as well as electoral behavior in the Republic of Moldova and Caucasian states.

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Az MCC Votes & Seats podcast sorozat legújabb adásában a 2021. júliusi moldovai előrehozott parlamenti választás hátterét és lehetséges következményeit járjuk körbe. Vendégelemzőnk, Dr. Natalia Putină* feltárja a Moldovai Köztársaságban napjainkban jellemző főbb politikai törésvonalak hátterét, miközben figyelemreméltó szakmai gyorstalpalóban részesülhetünk az ország európai integrációs jövőképeit illetően, az aktuális geopolitikai, gazdasági és jogállami helyzet ismertetésén keresztül.

A kelet-európai ország számos válságot élt meg az utóbbi időben, és az egyébként meglehetősen nyugodt és transzparens nyári kampányra és szavazásra is egyfajta politikai patthelyzet volt jellemző. A beszélgetés során szóba kerülnek a helyi választási hatóságok pártatlanságával és a kampányfinanszírozás átláthatóságával kapcsolatban a nemzetközi megfigyelők részéről felmerült aggályok is. A vendégszakértőnk felsorakoztatja a moldovai társadalom többsége által megfogalmazott főbb reformigényeket, továbbá kitérünk a mélyen polarizált légkörben zajlott nyári választási folyamat meghatározó politikai narratíváira és kampánytémáira.

Dr. Putină gondolatébresztő érvelése szerint a júliusi előrehozott választás egy új korszak kezdetét fémjelezheti a moldovai parlamenti politikában. Ha érdekel, mire alapozza vendégelemzőnk az iménti állítását, hallgassd végig a Votes & Seats interjúsorozat moldovai kiadását!

With the help of guest experts and politicians, in the podcast series of MCC’s Centre for Political Science we endeavor to analyze which actors are the real winners of the parliamentary and municipal elections taking place this year in different European countries and what exactly can be considered a real victory after the ballot counts.

 *Dr. PIOTR PIETRZAK (Sofia University "St. Kliment Ohridski") specializes in International Relations, geopolitics, and international law and is the editor-in-chief of In Statu Nascendi Journal of Political Philosophy and International Relations. 

With the help of guest experts and politicians, in the podcast series of MCC’s Centre for Political Science we endeavor to analyze which actors are the real winners of the parliamentary and municipal elections taking place this year in different European countries and what exactly can be considered a real victory after the ballot counts.

*Dr. Mikayel Zolyan is a political analyst and historian. He works as Associate Professor at the Yerevan V. Brusov State University of Languages and Social Sciences. From December 2018 to May 2021, Mr. Zolyan has been an Elected Member of the Armenian National Assembly.
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 A Votes & Seats legújabb adásában az örményországi előrehozott parlamenti választás hátteréről beszélgettünk az eredmények ismeretében. Vendégszakértőnk, Mikajel Zoljan* a 2020-as hegyi-karabahi háborúban elszenvedett örmény vereséghez vezető politikai folyamatokról szóló vitákat tekinti a kampány legmeghatározóbb elemének. Zoljan a 2021. júniusi választást az országot a 2018-as bársonyos forradalom előtt irányító régi és az azt követően hatalomra kerülő új politikai elit összecsapásaként értelmezi. Podcast-sorozatunk legújabb adásában többek között arra keressük a választ, miért előnyösebb Moszkvának a mérsékeltek győzelme az elkötelezetten oroszbarát formációkkal szemben. Kiderül, hogy ezúttal miért nem sikerült mozgósítani a három évvel ezelőtti választási kampányban még aktívan résztvevő fiatal és értelmiségi szavazókat. Azt is megtudjuk, vendégszakértőnk miért tartotta elkerülhetetlennek a 44 napos fegyveres konfliktus kirobbanását Azerbajdzsán és a hegyi-karabahi örmények között.

 *Vendégszakértőnk politikai elemző és történész, a Jereváni Bruszov Állami Nyelv- és Társadalomtudományi Egyetem docense. Dr. Mikajel Zoljan 2018 decemberétől 2021 májusáig megválasztott képviselőként vett részt az Örmény Nemzetgyűlés munkájában. 

With the help of guest experts and politicians, in the podcast series of MCC’s Centre for Political Science we endeavor to analyze which actors are the real winners of the parliamentary and municipal elections taking place this year in different European countries and what exactly can be considered a real victory after the ballot counts.

Thierry Baudet was born in 1983, he graduated at Leiden University as a Doctor of Philosophy with a thesis on national and European identity, and multiculturalism. He founded a think tank, the Forum for Democracy (Forum voor Democracy, FvD), which was the basis of his later established party with the same name. He was elected to Dutch MP as the leader of the FvD. The FvD became the largest party in several provinces during the provincial elections in 2019, than got 11 percent on the EP election. Though many politicians defected the party in 2020, the FvD reached 8 seats on the parliamentary election 2021. The central issues of Mr. Baudet and th FvD are the critique of the European integration and the protection of national identity. 

On 2021.03.17 Dutch voters elected a new Parliament and the party system notably changed. The Dutch right transformed: The PVV lost three seats, the FvD received eight seats, up six from the previous election. Two new right-wing actors appeared in the Parliament: the JA21, which split from the FvD, and the Farmer–Citizen Movement which grow up from the agrarian protests in 2019. From the Christian democratic parties, the biggest one, the CDA fall back, while the two smaller, the CU and the SGP gained the same electoral result as in the last general election. The party of prime minister Mark Rutte, the VVD win four parliamentary elections in a row. The left-wing parties could not boost their popularity, but a new party with pan-European programme and identity, the Volt, received 3 seats. A review about this complex and changing political context by our guest, Thierry Baudet.

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A holland parlamenti választásról, politikai helyzetről Hajdú András Thierry Baudet-t, a Fórum a Demokráciáért parlamenti párt elnökét kérdezte.

A Votes & Seats podcast sorozat következő részében a holland pártrendszer átalakulásáról beszélgettünk az egyik érintettel. Thierry Baudet 1983-ban született, 2012-ben a Leideni Egyetemen védte meg doktori disszertációját, amelyet a nemzeti és európai identitás, valamint a multikulturalizmus témakörében készített. 2016-ban Fórum a Demokráciáért (Forum voor Democracy, FvD) néven hozott létre egy think tank-et, amely az alapját jelentette hasonló nevet viselő pártjának. 2017-ben az FvD vezetőjeként parlamenti képviselővé választották. Az FvD a 2019-es regionális választás során a legtöbb szavazatot kapta, majd az EP-választáson 11 százalékot ért el. Bár 2020 őszén a pártot több politikusa is elhagyta, az FvD Baudet vezetésével 8 mandátumot szerzett a 2021-es parlamenti választáson. Baudet és pártja programjának központi elemét az európai integráció kritikája és a nemzeti identitás megőrzése jelenti.

A 2021. március 17-én rendezett választáson jelentős változások történtek a holland pártrendszerben. A jobboldalon belüli erőviszonyok átalakultak: Geert Wilders Szabadságpártja 3 mandátumot veszített, miközben az FvD 6 mandátummal bővült és megjelent két új jobboldali párt is a parlamentben, az FvD-ből kivált JA21 és a 2019-es agrártüntetések követeléseit hirdető mozgalom. A legnagyobb kereszténydemokrata párt, a CDA támogatottsága csökkent, a két kisebb párt pedig ugyanannyi mandátumot szerzett mint az előző választáson. Mark Rutte kormányfő liberális pártja egymás után negyedik alkalommal nyert parlamenti választást. A hagyományos baloldali pártok támogatottsága nem növekedett, viszont parlamenti párttá vált a páneurópai identitást hirdető Volt. Ezt a komplex, változó politikai környezetet tekintettük át vendégünkkel. 

With the help of guest experts and politicians, in the podcast series of MCC’s Centre for Political Science we endeavor to analyze which actors are the real winners of the parliamentary and municipal elections taking place this year in different European countries and what exactly can be considered a real victory after the ballot counts.

An election of paradoxes. Škoro wanted his Homeland Movement to became a right-wing alternative to the ruling conservative HDZ. The irony of fate is that while many years ago Škoro could not win the mayorship in his hometown Osijek with HDZ support, this time, the conservative party acquired the Slavonian city, right against Škoro’s candidate. The May 2021 local elections had another twist in the tale: while the freshly elected Zagrebian mayor Tomašević is an idol for those who want to get rid of the burden of war and nationalism, his father, a renown veteran, was a candidate on the Homeland Movement’s list in another municipality.

Will the new generation challenge the existing historical-cultural pillars of the Croatian society as the old political elite goes in retirement? How can the capital city’s new leader step in the shoes of the unexpectedly deceased former mayor whose popularity was guaranteed by his showman attitude carrying a cross in a pilgrimage on one day and making a speech to partisan veterans with a badge of Tito’s face on the other day? Mr. Raos helps us understand if it will be possible for the leftist-liberal-green local administrations to challenge the Croatian political elite at national level.

*Our guest expert, Dr. Višeslav Raos serves as Assistant Professor at the Faculty of Political Science of the University of Zagreb with specialization in comparative politics, electoral systems, and party competition.

With the help of guest experts and politicians, in the podcast series of MCC’s Centre for Political Science we endeavor to analyze which actors are the real winners of the parliamentary and municipal elections taking place this year in different European countries and what exactly can be considered a real victory after the ballot counts.

With the help of guest experts and politicians, in the podcast series of MCC’s Centre for Political Science we endeavor to analyze which actors are the real winners of the parliamentary and municipal elections taking place this year in different European countries and what exactly can be considered a real victory after the ballot counts.