Constitutional interpretation and populism: A comparison between Italy and Hungary

Abstract

This essay aims to compare the constitutional interpretation techniques used by the Italian Constitutional Court and the Hungarian one, facing the advancing of populist claims in Europe. After introducing the differences between the exercise of sovereignty in constitutional legal systems towards populistic regimes, the authors analyse some paradigmatic cases in which Constitutional Courts reacted to populistic waves. Through comparing the different legal instruments adopted to interpret the Constitution, this paper will therefore test the Italian and Hungarian legal system's concrete democratic evolution.