Hungary's president agrees to step down after law change ends his term

Hungary's President Tamás Sulyok has agreed to resign after signing a constitutional amendment that immediately ends his term. The ruling Tisza party, led by Prime Minister Péter Magyar, passed the amendment citing a "serious loss of confidence" in Sulyok, who was elected in early 2024 by the former prime minister Viktor Orbán's Fidesz party.

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The seventeenth amendment to the constitution has marked a watershed in Hungary’s constitutional democracy. By removing public office holders in a manner that openly violates the rule of law … it sets a negative precedent that inflicts a deep wound on the constitutional values of democracy, the separation of powers and the rule of law.

Sulyok, a former constitutional court judge, stated he had to sign the legislation to respect the law. However, he warned that the reform damages Hungary's constitutional democracy and sets a negative precedent for the rule of law and separation of powers. The amendment is part of Magyar's broader effort to dismantle the power structures established by Orbán during his 16-year tenure.

Orbán himself criticized the reforms, calling them a "tyranny" and warning that "no one will be safe" if the president can be removed in such a manner. Fidesz has seen declining public support since its election defeat in April. Magyar's Tisza party holds a two-thirds majority in parliament, enabling it to pass laws and elect a new president.

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Tyranny is no longer a threat but reality. If this could be done to the president, tomorrow, no one will be safe.

Following Sulyok's decision, Magyar announced that Parliament Speaker Ágnes Forsthoffer would serve as interim president. Magyar stated that these actions aim to restore the people's certainty that power can be constrained and the state can serve its citizens. The amendment also introduces a 12-year term limit for lawmakers and a retirement age for constitutional court judges, which will affect Orbán ally Péter Polt.

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With these decisions, we are restoring something that the Orbán regime spent many years trying to take away from the Hungarian people. The certainty that power can be constrained, that public assets can be recovered and that the state can once again serve its citizens, frees Hungarian citizens.