Hungary's President Sulyok Opens the Path to His Own Removal

Political Background of the Constitutional Amendments

In a Facebook address, Sulyok lamented that every future Hungarian head of state would be at the mercy of the executive and political actors and would no longer be able to exercise any controlling function. He pointed to the fact that the constitutional amendments on the one hand provide for his own removal while at the same time further weakening the presidential office. Sulyok had previously been given a five-day deadline by Magyar to sign the amendments, failing which impeachment proceedings would be initiated.

Peter Magyar confirmed via Facebook that Sulyok had countersigned the amendments and that the presidency would be vacant from the following Monday. He announced that he and his Tisza party intended to draft a completely new constitution to replace the Basic Law pushed through in 2011 under Orban. Magyar had accused Orban of having tailored the Basic Law entirely to suit his party's need for power.

Magyar wrote on Facebook: Mit diesen Entscheidungen geben wir dem ungarischen Volk etwas zurück, das das Orban-Regime seit vielen Jahren zu nehmen versucht: die Gewissheit, dass Macht begrenzt, Gemeineigentum zurückgewonnen und der Staat wieder seinen Bürgern, den freien ungarischen Bürgern, dienen kann. The constitutional amendments also create a new office tasked with recovering state assets.

Impact on the Constitutional Court and Members of Parliament

The judges of the Constitutional Court are likewise affected by the amendments. The term of office of constitutional judges is to end automatically upon reaching the age of 70, which currently affects four of the 15 judges, including the court's president, Peter Polt. The president of the Constitutional Court, Peter Polt, is also considered loyal to Orban. Experts had previously stated that the Constitutional Court could challenge the parliamentary decision only on procedural, not substantive, grounds.

Until a new head of state is elected by parliament, Speaker of Parliament Agnes Forsthoffer will assume the powers of the president. In Hungary, the head of state is elected by parliament, and the constitution provides a 30-day deadline for a new election. Magyar had also accused Sulyok of having supported Orbans policies.

Twelve-Year Rule and Orban's Future

The twelve-year term limit for members of parliament, which only takes effect in 2030, would also apply retroactively to previous terms in office. Viktor Orban was a member of the Hungarian parliament continuously from 1990 up to the time of reporting. His political future therefore remains uncertain, even though immediate legal consequences would only take effect in a few years.

With Sulyok's countersignature, a short but intense chapter of the Hungarian constitutional crisis comes to an end. The next 30 days will show whether parliament is capable of agreeing on a successor, or whether the political tensions between Magyar's Tisza movement and the remaining forces of the Fidesz camp will weigh on the search for a new head of state.