Hungary’s president says he will sign amendment ending his term

Hungarian President Tamas Sulyok said on Saturday, July 18, that he will sign a newly passed constitutional amendment that would end his term as head of state.

Sulyok, described as an ally of nationalist former leader Viktor Orban, criticised the amendment in a Facebook video but said he had no legal way to block it. He said he was fulfilling his obligation under Hungary’s Fundamental Law after weighing his legal options and his conscience.

Hungarian lawmakers passed the amendment the previous Monday as part of pro-EU conservative Prime Minister Peter Magyar’s effort to loosen the influence that Orban and his allies had held in the country. Magyar won a large election victory in April after campaigning on a promise of “regime change” following Orban’s 16 years in power.

Magyar has accused Sulyok and other senior state officials of being Orban’s “puppets”. After Sulyok’s announcement, Magyar welcomed the decision and said the final obstacle to their joint decisions taking effect had been removed.

Orban responded by saying that “the last barrier has fallen” and that “tyranny is no longer a threat, but a reality”. His Fidesz party held a protest last week and denounced the constitutional change as “autocratic”. Some rights groups have also criticised the move, with Human Rights Watch saying the changes were reminiscent of the Fidesz era.

Under the amended constitution, Sunday, July 19, would be Sulyok’s final day in office, with his mandate ending at midnight. Agnes Forsthoffer, the speaker of parliament, is set to serve temporarily as head of state until parliament elects a new president within 30 days.

In Hungary, the president cannot veto constitutional changes. The president can send an amendment to the constitutional court only for review on strict procedural grounds. Otherwise, the president has five days to sign a constitutional amendment.

Sulyok accused Magyar’s Tisza party of trampling on the “fundamental values of a free society” for the “sake of power”. He warned that the change would mark the end of “democratic rule of law” in Hungary.

The amendment also restores a mandatory retirement age of 70 for judges on the constitutional court. That provision will force out the court’s leader, Peter Polt, who is seen as another Orban ally. Other provisions restore the court’s power to review budget laws, introduce term limits for lawmakers and create a new National Asset Recovery and Protection Office with broad powers to combat corruption.

Watchdogs have alleged that corruption became endemic under Orban. Magyar said the decisions would restore limits on power, allow public assets to be recovered and let the state serve its citizens again.