Centre—Right Parties and Political Outcomes in East Central Europe

Abstract

The emergence of moderate centre—right parties in East Central Europe after 1989 was closely related to the strength and nature of organized opposition during the late communist period. Where such opposition was strong enough to take power, it went on to become the ideological, organizational and elite base for one or more moderate right parties. Where it was weak, moderate right parties were eclipsed by what I call `independence right' and `communist nationalist' parties that dominated the party system using nationalism and other forms of right-wing discourse. Identifying what kind of party dominates this discourse helps explain the very different political outcomes that followed regime change in 1989, including the different structures of party competition and the diverging quality of democracy. Over time, however, political change and the exigencies of qualifying for European Union (EU) membership empowered the centre—right, prompting most `independence right' and `communist nationalist' parties to become mainstream left-wing or right-wing parties. But the EU is now playing another role in party politics in the region, as those conservative centre—right parties that vow to protect the country from integration have become somewhat more powerful compared to their liberal counterparts.