The memory is small, almost trivial: a green-or perhaps aquamarine-sleeping mat carried across mountain trails in the 1980s. Yet it captures something larger about a vanished world. In those years, for many Poles growing up under late-stage communism, Hungary represented a curious anomaly within the Soviet bloc-a place where life seemed just a little brighter, freer, more colorful. Goods from Hungary carried a quiet prestige, symbols of a system that, while still authoritarian, appeared less suffocating than Poland’s decaying Polish People’s Republic.

That sense of admiration, even envy, was rooted in more than consumer goods. It reflected a broader perception that Hungary had managed to carve out a relatively softer version of socialism-“goulash communism,” as it was often called-offering limited economic flexibility and a slightly more open cultural atmosphere. For Poles navigating shortages, censorship, and political repression, Hungary felt like a narrow window into an alternative reality.

Decades later, that dynamic has not only reversed but also deepened into something far more consequential. Poland, having endured and then rolled back a period of democratic erosion, now finds itself in the unusual position of offering lessons-hard-earned and incomplete-to a Hungary emerging from its own long experiment with illiberal governance.

At the center of Hungary’s recent political trajectory stands Viktor Orbán, whose ascent to power in 2010 marked the beginning of a systematic transformation of the state. What initially appeared to be a conventional conservative victory gradually evolved into a comprehensive restructuring of Hungary’s democratic institutions. Orbán’s party, Fidesz, moved swiftly to consolidate power, targeting key pillars of liberal democracy: the media, the judiciary, and constitutional checks and balances.

The media landscape was among the first to be reshaped. Independent voices faced mounting pressure through regulatory changes, economic constraints, and political intimidation. A network of pro-government outlets emerged, sustained by loyal business elites and state advertising. This new ecosystem did more than promote government narratives-it actively cultivated fear, particularly around issues such as migration and European integration, while discrediting dissenting perspectives.

Simultaneously, the judiciary underwent profound........

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