Abstract
Populism is a much-debated phenomenon in contemporary democracies. In the European context, particular concern has been raised (not least by EU institutions) with regard to countries in the Eastern part of the continent.
While the populist phenomenon is present in the political arena of almost any European country, it is fair to ask whether there is specific dimension to populism in those countries that have embarked on democratization trajectories only in the last three decades. On one hand, then, it is evident that liberal democracies are affected by populist tendencies in general, on the other, the question emerges as to how populism might be a distinctive force in the post-communist countries in East-Central Europe