Authors

Marwa Mamdouh-Salem¹;  ¹ University of Helsinki, Egypt

Discussion

This study examines the factors that led to the failure of consolidating democratic transitions in Egypt and Hungary during the post-revolutionary phase. It seeks to identify the convergences and divergences between the political evolution of the selected cases albeit being in different regions, and of different political, economic, societal and cultural dynamics. The fact that revolution is a democratic process engaging wide strata of the people offers an interesting angle to study. Revolution opens a new horizon of possibilities. The question is: How this new horizon is perceived? And why a certain path is chosen? The study analyses the impact of spatial, temporal and structural aspects behind the underlying political processes: Spatial context is examined evaluating, on the one hand, the relevance of geopolitical situatedness, and regional alliances, on the other. Secondly, temporal context is examined regarding the argument of path-dependency, and also in relation to the revolutionary experience and its consequences on post-revolutionary political transitions phase. Thirdly, the changing role and position of the middle class are elaborated in connection to the deeper societal effects of transformations. The study aims to provide a more comprehensive understanding of the various simultaneous factors that determine the processes that can lead to the failure of democratic experience.