The politics of academic survival - Academic resistance under autocratization: lessons from Hungary

This article examines how academic actors resist autocratization in Hungary by analysing three high-profile conflicts between the government and academic institutions: the forced relocation of Central European University (CEU), the restructuring of the Hungarian Academy of Sciences (HAS), and the takeover of the University of Theatre and Film Arts (SZFE). Drawing on theories of democratic defence and the literature on academic autonomy, the study shows how different levels of salience of the autocratizing measures, partisan polarization, and field-specific resources shape the forms and effectiveness of resistance. The findings reveal that while legal and symbolic repertoires were unable to prevent institutional restructuring, academic actors nonetheless generated long-term forms of democratic defence through knowledge production, transnational networks, and the creation of alternative educational spaces. These cumulative, field-based practices maintained epistemic autonomy even when formal mechanisms of accountability failed. The paper contributes to debates on democratic resilience by demonstrating that academic resistance in hybrid regimes rarely reverses autocratizing measures, yet plays a critical role in sustaining democratic norms, critical discourse, and the capacity for future institutional renewal.