This book provides an in-depth analysis of the social democratic parties in the four member states of the so-called “Visegrád Group”- Czech Republic, Hungary, Poland and Slovakia. The timeline spans the last two decades, which saw the parties in question come to power, govern and collapse. The case studies of all four countries are structured in the same way, offering: explanation of the historical background (including electoral results), analyses of the context, structures, membership and voters; evaluation of the programmes and hypotheses for potential future trajectories. Given the European relevance of the topic, the fifth chapter provides a comparative analysis, with a handful of explanations as to why Visegrád Group countries have proved to be tough partners in European integration processes.
Author(s): Ania Skrzypek, András Bíró-Nagy
Publisher: Palgrave Macmillan
Year: 2023
Language: English
Pages: 244
City: London
Foreword
Visegrad: From Hope to Horror and Back Again
Acknowledgments
Contents
Notes on Contributors
List of Figures
List of Tables
Introduction
The Visegrád Discomfort: Understanding the Predicaments and the Prospects for Progressivism
1 The Electoral History: From a Splendid Rise to a Bitter Challenge
2 The Organisations: From an Inherited Réseau Towards a New Open Model
3 The Programme: From Catch-All Offer to a Core Competence Search
4 The Voters: From Diverse Electorate to Mobilisation Across Divides
5 Way Forward: Can Social Democrats Resolve the Visegrád Discomfort?
Bibliography
The State of Social Democracy in the Czech Republic
1 Electoral Results of the Czech Social Democratic Party
2 The Party Organisations of the ČSSD
Media Reach
Organisational Structure of the ČSSD
3 Position in the Party System
4 The ČSSD’s Relationship with the S&D Member Parties and Civil Society
5 Programmatic Positioning
6 Social Democratic Voters, Social Democratic Issues
The Insecure and Fearful Group
The Left-Wing Optimistic Group
The Individualist Group
7 Conclusion and Discussion
References
The State of Social Democracy in Hungary
1 Introduction
2 Electoral Results of the Hungarian S&D Member Parties
3 The Party Organisations of the MSZP and DK
The Memberships of the MSZP and DK
Financial Situation
Media Reach
Organisational Infrastructure, National Presence
The Parties’ Leadership Structure and Internal Organisation
4 Position in the Party System
5 The Relationship Between the Hungarian S&D Member Parties and Civil Society
6 Programmatic Positioning
Hungarian Socialist Party (MSZP)
Democratic Coalition (DK)
7 Social Democratic Voters, Social Democratic Issues
Distribution of Voters by the Level of Urbanisation
Gender Composition
Age Composition
Composition by Educational Attainment
Distribution by Wealth and Class Identity
The Potential Voters of the Social Democratic Parties
The Most Pressing Problems as Perceived by the Hungarian Public and the Popularity of Social Democratic Values
8 Conclusion
Bibliography
The State of Social Democracy in Poland
1 Electoral Results and a Brief History of the Polish Member Parties of the PES
2 The Party Organisations of the NL
The Membership of the NL
Financial Situation
Media Reach
Organisational Infrastructure and National Presence
The NL’s Leadership Structure and Internal Organisation
3 Position in the Party System
4 The Relationship Between the NL and Civil Society
5 Programmatic Positioning
The Democratic Left Alliance (SLD)
The New Left (NL)
6 Social Democratic Voters, Social Democratic Issues
Distribution of Voters by the Level of Urbanisation
Gender Composition
Age Composition
Composition by Educational Attainment
Distribution by Profession
The Ideological Profile of Social Democratic Voters and the Popularity of Social Democratic Values
7 Conclusion
Bibliography
The State of Social Democracy in Slovakia: The Twilight (or Rebirth) of Social Democracy?
1 Introduction: Decline of the Left and the Visegrád Context
2 Electoral Results
3 Organisation
Party Leadership
Membership and Financial Situation
4 Position in the Party System
5 Relationships with Civil Society, Social Movements, and Trade Unions
6 Programmatic Positioning
Economic and Social Policy Issues
EU and Foreign Policy Issues
Cultural and Post-material Issues
7 Voters
Spatial Support
Socio-Economic Characteristics of Smer-SD Voters
Gender and Age
Degree
Unemployment
Ethnicity, Religion, and Population
8 The Way Forward—Opportunities for Social Democracy
Executive Summary
Bibliography
Index
