The new communists

In the weeks ahead of Hungary’s parliamentary election on Sunday, postboxes across the country delivered some welcome news — courtesy of the prime minister. One letter informed households that due to a one-time action by the government, their next gas bill would be reduced by roughly €38. Another, delivered to each of the country’s more than 2 million pensioners, contained about €32 in gift vouchers. Much has been written about the assaults on press freedom and civil society by Central European governments in Budapest and Warsaw. Far less attention has been paid to a fact their critics prefer to elide: They keep winning elections. Orbán’s election season giveaways — announced last month on his Facebook page — are part of a pattern of spending that helps explain the prime minister’s enduring popularity. Polls predict his ruling Fidesz party will rake in roughly 50 percent of the vote, enough to ensure him a comfortable parliamentary majority and another four years in power.