Hungarian President resigns after constitutional changes, political landscape reconfigures

Tamás Sulyok, the President of Hungary, has resigned following a constitutional amendment that immediately cuts short his term.

The legislative initiative, voted by the governing Tisza party of Prime Minister Péter Magyar, is based on the idea of a “deep loss of confidence” by the people in the head of state. Sulyok had come to lead the country at the beginning of 2024, elected by parliamentarians of Fidesz, the nationalist formation previously led by Viktor Orbán.

Announcing his decision, Sulyok said there was no other way but to sign the constitutional reform, adding that he respected his legal obligation. However, the former member of the Constitutional Court issued a stern warning, calling this move a severe blow to the rule of law principle.

According to him, the seventeenth amendment represents a pivotal moment in the journey of Hungarian constitutional democracy. He criticized the procedure of dismissing a high official, arguing that it sets a harmful precedent for the balance of powers and democratic principles.

This reform is part of the new administration of Péter Magyar’s agenda to dismantle the mechanisms installed during Viktor Orbán’s governance period. The Tisza party emerged victorious in the April elections and secured a two-thirds majority in the Assembly, paving the way for changes to the state’s fundamental laws.

For his part, Orbán has strongly opposed the reform, calling it an open danger to democracy. “If this can be done to the president, then no one will be safe tomorrow,” he wrote on social media platforms.

With Sulyok’s departure, it is anticipated that the speaker of parliament, Ágnes Forstthoffer, will temporarily exercise the functions of the head of state until the next president is elected.

The amendment also introduces new rules for lawmakers, setting a maximum limit of 12 years in office, as well as a retirement age of 70 for members of the Constitutional Court. This latter measure directly affects the current head of that institution, Péter Polt, a figure seen as close to Viktor Orbán.

For a long time, Péter Magyar has levied accusations against Sulyok, portraying him as a president who failed to embody national unity and aligned himself in defense of the interests of Orbán’s previous government.