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Hungary Moves to Remove President Tamás Sulyok
Confirmed
In Short: Hungary's parliament is poised to remove President Tamás Sulyok through a constitutional amendment backed by Prime Minister Péter Magyar's majority government.
The Hungarian parliament is moving to remove President Tamás Sulyok through a constitutional amendment supported by Prime Minister Péter Magyar's pro-European, center-right Tisza party, which holds a two-thirds majority in Parliament. This move is seen as an attempt to roll back policies implemented by Orbán's government.
Magyar argues that Sulyok failed to fulfill his role as president by not standing against Orbán's antidemocratic steps. However, Fidesz, Orbán's party, has criticized the amendment as an 'unprecedented' assault on Hungary's democratic order.
Despite opposition protests and calls for a candlelight vigil, the amendment is almost certain to pass, given the two-thirds majority held by Magyar's Tisza party. Gulyás, a key figure in the opposition, has announced his resignation as caucus leader due to the amendment's 12-year term limit.
Fidesz supporters have staged protests against the changes, but Prime Minister Magyar has vowed to proceed with an impeachment procedure if Sulyok does not sign the amendment within five days.
What's confirmed
What's still developing
- After winning in a landslide election in April, current Prime Minister Péter Magyar and his pro-European, center-right Tisza party hold a two-thirds majority in Parliament, allowing them to make constitutional…
- Sulyok needs to sign the amendment within five days for it to become law, and has not said whether he would do so, but Tisza has vowed to launch an impeachment procedure against him if he doesn’t.
- Magyar has argued that Sulyok failed to live up to his role as president by neglecting to stand in the way of antidemocratic steps by Orbán’s government.
- Fidesz has argued that the amendment is an “unprecedented” assault on Hungary’s democratic order, and last week staged a protest in opposition to the changes which drew around 3,000 people but which Orbán did not attend.
- Gulyás announced he would resign as caucus leader, given that the amendment’s 12-year term limit would make him unable to take a seat in Parliament in the next national election.
- Fidesz supporters called for a candlelight vigil outside Hungary’s parliament building on Monday evening to demonstrate against what they called the “tyranny” of Magyar’s government.
- The constitutional amendment is almost certain to pass given the two-thirds parliamentary majority Magyar’s Tisza party wields in parliament.