Politicization of migration as a factor of electoral mobilization in the Visegrad group countries

Abstract

The article examines the role of migration as one of the factors of electoral mobilization in the Visegrad Group countries – Poland, the Czech Republic, Slovakia and Hungary – in the period from the migration crisis of 2015 to the current election campaigns. The relevance of the topic is due to the fact that the migration issue has noticeably increased its presence in the political discourse of European states and is increasingly used by political actors as a tool to influence voters. Therefore, the aim of the article is to clarify how the issue of migration affects electoral behavior and shapes the features of political competition in these countries. The study is based on a combination of historical, comparative and behavioral approaches, which made it possible not only to trace the development of relevant processes in dynamics, but also to compare national cases and identify key motivational orientations of voters. The results obtained indicate that the impact of migration issues is heterogeneous and varies depending on the political context of each country. This factor is most clearly manifested in Hungary, where migration has long remained a central element of political rhetoric and an important tool for mobilizing the electorate. In Poland, the migration topic is also actively used in the election campaign, but its importance is largely balanced by other socio-economic issues. In contrast, in the Czech Republic, it does not acquire a decisive character and rather acts as an auxiliary factor in political competition. Slovakia occupies an intermediate position: with a noticeable rhetorical presence of the migration topic, its real impact on the election results remains limited. At the same time, we can talk about a general tendency to spread anti-migrant narratives among the leading political forces in the region, which affects the transformation of political discourse and contributes to the strengthening of social polarization. The issue of Ukrainian migrants deserves special attention: despite the fact that they are mainly perceived as forced migrants, their presence is gradually entering the sphere of political discussions. The results obtained can be used as a basis for further research into the relationship between migration processes and electoral behavior in the European space.