The hubris arc: how visionary politicians turn into authoritarians

By Trang Chu, Associate Fellow, Saïd Business School, University of Oxford
Tim Morris, Emeritus Professor, Saïd Business School, University of Oxford

What turns a democratically elected leader into an authoritarian? The process is rarely abrupt. It unfolds gradually and is often justified as a necessary reform. It is framed as what the people wanted. All this makes it difficult for citizens to recognise what is happening until it’s too late.

Consider Viktor Orbán’s transformation in Hungary. Once celebrated as a liberal democrat who challenged communist rule, Orbán now controls 90% of the Hungarian media and has systematically packed the country’s constitutional court. His trajectory is now widely recognised as a textbook case of…

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