In Budapest’s diplomatic district, a high-profile think tank associated with Hungary’s ruling Fidesz party faced a significant decline following the country’s April elections that swept Viktor Orbán from power. The Danube Institute, established in 2013 with government backing, had become a focal point for what supporters called the “postliberal” movement—a loose coalition of heterodox conservative intellectuals exploring alternatives to liberal democratic norms. However, its influence declined rapidly after Orbán’s defeat and the subsequent constitutional amendment in June dismantled state patronage systems that funded the institute and related entities.
The Danube Institute had long been a hub for international conservatives and right-wing thinkers. It hosted figures such as American podcaster Dave Rubin and Dutch far-right activist Eva Vlaardingerbroek, and maintained connections with prominent American intellectuals like Rod Dreher, a key proponent of postliberal ideas, who facilitated conservative media visits to Hungary during Orbán’s tenure. Critics, including historian Anne Applebaum, argued that the institute functioned as a vehicle to legitimize Orbán’s increasingly autocratic governance on the global stage and perpetuated a political system where opposition parties had little chance of success.
Following Orbán’s loss in the April elections and the passage of constitutional reforms in June curtailing funding, the think tank’s future in Budapest appeared uncertain. Despite this, many of the intellectuals affiliated with the postliberal movement maintain a strong presence in U.S. political discourse, suggesting their ideas will persist beyond Hungarian borders. Observers note that while these figures were once viewed as aligned with Orbán’s regime, their influence and agendas are broader and cannot be reduced merely to support for his government.
The postliberal ideology, articulated in works such as Patrick Deneen’s 2018 book "Why Liberalism Failed," critiques classical liberalism for promoting individual autonomy and formal equality at the expense of social cohesion, economic equity, and spiritual fulfillment. Proponents argue liberalism’s principles have contributed to rising inequality and cultural fragmentation, necessitating a new political synthesis that transcends traditional left-right divisions. Early advocates supported populist leaders like Donald Trump as champions of this realignment, combining social conservatism with left-leaning economic policies.
Intellectuals connected to the Danube Institute, including figures like philosopher Philip Pilkington and political theorist Gladden Pappin, emphasize the limitations of liberal democratic frameworks and call for more robust state authority and moral vision in governance. Pilkington, a former Danube Institute fellow, has criticized liberalism’s anti-hierarchical tendencies as self-destructive, while Pappin advocates for a strong party-state model that can overcome neoliberal dominance through intellectual leadership.
Pappin’s relocation to Hungary and appointment in 2023 as president of the Hungarian Institute of International Affairs, another Fidesz-aligned entity, underscored the ongoing interplay between these intellectual movements and Hungary’s political structures, even as the Orbán era receded. The closing of earlier liberal institutions such as the Institute for Advanced Study—and the forced relocation of Central European University to Vienna—reflects the broader contest between liberal and postliberal currents within Hungary.
As the political winds shift, the fate of Budapest’s postliberal scene remains unclear. While the formal support structures funded by the former government are being dismantled, the ideas nurtured within these institutions continue to shape debates about liberal democracy’s future both in Hungary and abroad.