Privatizátorok és nemzeti nagytőkések. A vagyonos elit megítélése a rendszerváltás utáni Magyarországon
Privatizers and National Capitalists: Attitudes towards the Wealthy Elite after the Political Transition in Hungary

Summary/Abstract: The study examines the Hungarian society’s attitudes towards the wealthy elite based on a representative, nationwide survey involving 1000 participants in 2017. The survey’s aim was to investigate the participants’ opinion about the most outstanding personages in contemporary Hungarian economy and whether they are thought to have acquired their wealth through their own efforts or their political connections. The survey revealed that the meritocratic elite was thought to comprise of individuals who had started their career in the Kádár Era, then participated in the subsequent privatization process and managed to maintain their position as the richest elite of the country for decades by the time of the survey (Sándor Csányi, Sándor Demján, György Wáberer). On the other hand, the group who acquired their wealth through their political connections, was thought to comprise of the so-called “national capitalists” who amassed their wealth under Viktor Orbán’s government (Lajos Simicska, Andy Vajna, Lőrinc Mészáros). While the participants’ party preference did not affect their attitudes towards the wealthy elite, incumbency does matter: the circumstances of the connections between politics and amassing wealth tend to fade in a few decades, which improves the public opinion, especially in juxtaposition with the merging new elite whose wealth is perceptibly associated with politics.

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