Europe — 2026-07-20

Hungary Post-Orban Government Forces Presidential Resignation Via Constitutional Amendment Dismantling Orban-Era Appointees

BLUFMagyar's forced removal of Hungary's president eliminates the last institutional counterweight to Tisza's supermajority, which will likely install a party-aligned successor by August 20.

Hungarian President Tamás Sulyok signed the seventeenth amendment to the Fundamental Law on Saturday, ending his own term, five days after Prime Minister Péter Magyar's Tisza party passed the measure 139-6 when Sulyok, an Orbán-era appointee, refused Magyar's calls to resign 1234. In a Facebook video, Sulyok called the forced amendment an unprecedented and shameful abuse of power, though he acknowledged that refusing to sign would itself have been unlawful 12. His term ends at midnight Monday, when Speaker Ágnes Forsthoffer becomes interim president pending an election within 30 days; the amendment also imposes a 12-year lawmaker term limit and creates a National Asset Recovery and Asset Protection Office 13. Orbán said the episode proves "tyranny is no longer a threat, but a reality," while Magyar said his party would meet Monday to discuss a presidential successor 23.

Analysis
Sulyok's forced departure clears the last independent check on Magyar's dismantling of Orban-era institutions, leaving Tisza's two-thirds majority free to install a successor and extend the same recall mechanism to sitting judicial appointees. Parliament will likely elect a Tisza-aligned president within the constitutionally mandated window, by August 20, given the party's uncontested two-thirds majority in parliament. High confidence reflects the near-unanimous parliamentary vote and the absence of any bloc capable of blocking the nomination. The accompanying judicial term limits and anti-corruption office extend Magyar's institutional purge from the presidency into the courts and civil service.

4 sources

Hungarian president Tamás Sulyok signs constitutional amendment ending his own mandate - Euronews
Hungary's president signs a constitutional amendment ending his term - ABC News (AP)
Hungarys president enacts constitutional amendment concluding his term - European Interest
Hungary's President Ends His Own Term in Bow to New Premier - Bloomberg