Hungarians head to the polls on Sunday for parliamentary elections whose results may have consequences across Eastern Europe, says Dan McLaughlin on this week's podcast.
At stake in Budapest is Prime Minister Victor Orban's supermajority in parliament, which he has used to push through a number of authoritarian reforms.
On the campaign trail Mr Orban has promised "moral, legal and political revenge" on Hungary's enemies, for which many read Mr Orban's own political opponents.
That approach has helped galvanise Hungary's fractured political opposition, with polls showing Mr Orban's supermajority is now under threat.
Mr Orban has warned of a conspiracy to install a new pro-immigration government masterminded by billionaire George Soros and has called on voters to "save Hungary".
The outcome of Sunday's vote will be watched closely by other leaders in the region who may wish to emulate Mr Orban's approach.
Also on the podcast: Israel has rejected the prospect of an inquiry into the shooting dead of 16 Palestinians by its army at the Gaza-Israel border during demonstrations last Friday.
Mark Weiss reports from Jerusalem on the tensions, which are expected to rise again on Friday after Muslim prayers.
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