Strategic Intolerance: The Rise of Anti-LGBTQ+ Rhetoric in Right-Wing Politics in Türkiye and Hungary

Over the course of the late 20th century and the 21st century, the increasing anti-LGBTQ+ rhetoric has become a noticeable part of the contemporary political arena in backsliding democracies, notably Türkiye and Hungary. The twain, both ruled by nationalist and conservative political parties, the Justice and Development Party (AKP) and Fidesz respectively, have experienced a prominent rise in the representation of LGBTQ+ symbols and communities as emblems of moral misfit or menaces to nationalist values, religion, communal unity, or traditions. This shift in narrative is part of a deeper process of eviscerating democracy, national populist rule, and the entrapment of political power in the right-wing administration and values. Leaders such as Recep Tayyip Erdoğan and Viktor Orbán are observed to be more frequently relying on domestic polarizing campaigns that target LGBTQ+ communities and employ anti-LGBTQ+ rhetoric. This political standing of autocratic leaders suggests an endeavor to become the protectors of culture against “imposed” Western liberalism and the LGBTQ+ movements. Alongside a dominant incentive to mobilize their conservative-leaning voter bases and cultivating an almost permanent set of supporters, these initiatives also signal a wider aim of imposing religious or traditional values on their respective constituents in the face of the rising trend of human rights movements for LGBTQ+ rights.

The gradually expanding prominence of such rhetoric invites critical inquiry into the political function it serves, the sociocultural conditions that allow it to resonate with portions of the electorate, and the implications it holds for human rights, minority protection, and democratic pluralism in both countries. In the scıpe of national and international policy, the rise in discriminatory rhetoric against LGBTQ+ individuals and communities is caused by various circumstances. This study questions why anti-LGBTQ+ rhetoric has become a strategic component of right-wing campaigns and policies in Türkiye and Hungary.