Grosz, Karoly

▪ 1997

      Hungarian communist politician (b. Aug. 1, 1930, Miskolc, Hung.—d. Jan. 7, 1996, Godollo, Hung.), as prime minister (1987-88), initiated economic reforms that led to his party's collapse. Despite his loyalty to the Hungarian Socialist Workers' Party (HSWP), his program of austerity steered the government away from communism, prompting more radical politicians to replace him in order to accelerate the transition to a market economy. Grosz joined the Communist Party at age 15, embarking on a career in the propaganda department. His successful political career experienced a momentary setback in 1979 when he was banished to a party position in his hometown of Miskolc but rebounded in the mid-1980s when he was recalled to Budapest and shortly thereafter joined the Politburo. Janos Kadar, longtime leader of Hungary, grappling with a stagnant economy and his own flagging popularity, appointed the reform-minded Grosz prime minister in June 1987; less than a year later, Grosz took over Kadar's post as general secretary of the HSWP. His economic reforms, which included the institution of income taxes and value-added taxes, were accompanied by a rise in unemployment, inflation, and the cost of living. After resisting social reform, he was pressured to step down as head of the government in November 1988. Although he was part of a quadrumvirate that ruled briefly in 1989, he opposed the transformation of the HSWP into the Hungarian Socialist Party, and his hard-core splinter group was soundly defeated in the elections of 1990.

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