National Sovereignty, Sovereignty and the European Union. Public attitudes in Hungary, 1995-2023

In recent years, the discourse surrounding the European Union has become increasingly intertwined with the issue of national sovereignty, both in Hungary and in other member states. Political actors opposing deeper EU integration, including explicitly euroskeptic figures, often portray the competencies and decision-making mechanisms of EU institutions as conflicting with, or even directly opposing, the interests of member states. While Hungary’s accession to the EU and the years immediately following it were marked by an almost unanimous political consensus in favor of European integration, this consensus has since eroded, giving way to more polarized opinions. This shift is also reflected in the communication strategies of successive Fidesz governments over the past decade.

In this study, I examine whether the perception of the EU as a constraint on national sovereignty is evident not only in political discourse but also in public attitudes. Specifically, I investigate whether individuals with a positive view of the EU are less likely to hold sovereigntist convictions, and conversely, whether those with a more negative opinion of the EU place greater emphasis on national sovereignty. Furthermore, I explore how these attitudes manifest across different social groups and how their interrelation has evolved over time. I hypothesize that euroskepticism and sovereigntist views are increasingly correlated at the individual level.

To address these research questions, I analyze Hungarian data from the National Identity module of the International Social Survey Programme (ISSP), focusing on the survey waves conducted in 1995, 2003, 2013, and 2023.