Which European countries show the highest levels of public hostility toward LGBT politicians according to the European Values Study?
Executive summary
The sources provided do not include country-by-country European Values Study (EVS) tables ranking public hostility specifically toward LGBT politicians, so a definitive EVS list cannot be produced from this material; however, the reporting and academic summaries point to a pattern: higher public hostility and politicized anti-LGBT rhetoric is concentrated in parts of Central and Eastern Europe and in states with dominant conservative or nationalist governments, while Northwestern Europe generally shows greater acceptance [1] [2] [3]. Where reporting names hotspots, it repeatedly cites Poland, Hungary, Bulgaria, Russia and neighbouring post‑Soviet spaces as facing elevated hostility and political campaigns that target LGBT people and politicians [3] [4] [2] [5].
1. Eastern and Central Europe emerge as the most frequently cited hotspots
Multiple analyses and news reports describe a clear East–West divide in social attitudes and political hostility: academic reviews and surveys note that North‑West European countries rank high on tolerance while many Eastern European nations show persistently high homonegativity and in some cases regression in acceptance [1] [2]. Reporting on recent political trends connects nationalist and far‑right parties in countries such as Poland and Hungary to anti‑LGBT rhetoric used for political mobilization, and identifies those countries as focal points where public hostility is amplified by elites [3] [6].
2. Poland and Hungary are repeatedly singled out by observers and institutions
Sources highlight Poland’s ruling Law and Justice party and Hungary under Viktor Orbán as examples where political elites have weaponized “gender ideology” and anti‑LGBT messaging, producing a political climate hostile to LGBT people and politicians; analysts and the Council of Europe note these national political practices contribute to wider social prejudice [3] [7] [5]. While ILGA‑Europe and some polling show complex and sometimes improving private attitudes in certain years, the political discourse in these countries remains an important driver of public hostility and the perception of danger for LGBT public figures [8] [3].
3. Russia, the post‑Soviet region and parts of the Balkans surface in human‑rights reporting
Longstanding research and reporting identify Russia (and Russian‑occupied areas), parts of the Caucasus and other post‑Soviet states as places where laws and “propaganda” narratives have dramatically constrained public space for LGBT people and increased hostility, a pattern that would likely translate into elevated hostility toward LGBT politicians in EVS measures if broken out by country [1] [2]. Regional reporting also cites Balkan and Southeastern states such as Bulgaria as environments where conservative cultural forces — including churches and far‑right groups — have amplified hostility toward LGBT people and public representatives [4] [2].
4. Western Europe shows both greater acceptance and worrying elite‑driven backlashes
Trend surveys and NGO reviews point to generally higher acceptance in north‑western EU states (for example, Sweden, Denmark, the Netherlands) and improved attitudes over time in several countries, but civil‑society reports and ILGA‑Europe warn that hostile political speech and targeted campaigns — sometimes concentrated in otherwise more tolerant countries — can create spikes in hostility toward LGBT politicians and public figures [1] [8] [9]. This means that an EVS snapshot focused on “hostility to LGBT politicians” could show occasional anomalies where political elites stoke hostility even in broadly accepting societies [9] [8].
5. Limits of the available reporting and what would be needed for a direct EVS answer
None of the provided sources includes EVS country‑level statistics specifically measuring public hostility toward LGBT politicians, so it is not possible from this pack to quote an EVS ranking or precise percentages; existing sources instead synthesize broader attitude data, NGO annual reviews and human‑rights reporting that consistently point to Central/Eastern Europe, Russia and certain Balkan states as the places most often associated with elevated hostility [1] [2] [3] [4]. To answer the original question authoritatively using the European Values Study, one would need the EVS dataset or published EVS tables that operationalise “hostility toward LGBT politicians” and list scores by country — those specific EVS outputs are not present among the supplied documents [1].