Hungary parliament votes to remove president from office
Tamás Sulyok was widely seen as a loyalist of former prime minister Viktor Orbán, who lost power in April after 16 years.
Hungarian Parliament Votes to Dismiss President from Office
Since his party's victory in April, Péter Magyar (left) has consistently urged Tamás Sulyok (right) to step down.
The Hungarian parliament has voted to remove President Tamás Sulyok from his position, a figure perceived as a loyalist to former Prime Minister Viktor Orbán, who lost power in April after a 16-year tenure.
Prime Minister Péter Magyar's Tisza party utilized its two-thirds majority to push through the 17th amendment to the constitution, effectively ending Sulyok's term as well as that of the head of the Constitutional Court, Péter Polt.
This marked the most significant day in parliament since the new government assumed office in early May, following its unexpected landslide victory over Orbán's Fidesz party on April 12.
Sulyok now has five days to either sign the amendment—his own political demise—or refer it to the Constitutional Court.
Should Sulyok choose to refer it to the court, Magyar has indicated he will initiate impeachment proceedings against him, which would result in an automatic suspension from office.
Alternatively, he could resign to prevent a constitutional crisis, as the new government has been urging him to do.
Members of the now-opposition Fidesz party exited parliament prior to Monday's vote, accusing the Tisza party of establishing a tyranny.
Fidesz contends that the amendment provides the government with the arbitrary authority to dismiss any public official immediately.
"The great irony of the situation is that Fidesz has fallen victim to their own concept of power," stated Péter Rona, a former opposition presidential candidate, in an interview with the BBC.
The 2011 constitution, crafted by Orbán's administration, established the principle that "the winner takes all."
During its time in power from 2010 to 2026, Fidesz restructured the Hungarian state to align with its interests, appointing party loyalists to positions that were meant to be independent, leveraging its two-thirds majority.
The 141 Tisza deputies in parliament applauded as the vote results were announced.
The amendment also mandates the removal of Constitutional Court judges over the age of 70 and prohibits deputies who have served three terms in parliament from running again—this affects more than half of the current Fidesz deputies.
"I fully support the removal of the president," remarked András Baka, former head of the Supreme Court, in a BBC interview.
He argued that Hungary was governed by the rule of law from 1989 to 2010, but after that, Fidesz seized state institutions and established an authoritarian regime.
"And it is now very difficult to dismantle a sophisticated authoritarian regime... which was designed to endure even after electoral defeat," Baka added.
Viktor Orbán has been largely absent from public view since his party's electoral loss.
The 17th amendment is actually a collection of various laws aimed at guiding the country until a new constitution can be established in two to three years.
Baka noted that the only aspect of the package he disagrees with is the provision that prevents parliamentary deputies who have served three terms from running again.
"This restricts the public's right to vote for their preferred candidates," he argued.
Since the April election, Orbán's party has been in decline, struggling to cope with the unexpected defeat.
Orbán himself has rarely been seen in public and has declined to take his seat in parliament. On Monday, he left Hungary to attend the finals of the football World Cup in the United States.
There is increasing frustration with Orbán among the remaining members of Fidesz, many of whom are confused by his absence.
Gergely Gulyás, the party's second-in-command, resigned as head of the parliamentary group on Monday, compounding the party's difficulties.
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