Hungary’s parliament has voted to remove President Tamás Sulyok from office in a landmark constitutional move led by Prime Minister Péter Magyar’s ruling Tisza party.
The decision came after lawmakers approved the 17th amendment to the constitution with a two-thirds majority, ending the terms of both President Sulyok and Constitutional Court President Péter Polt. The vote marks one of the most significant political developments since the Tisza party’s landslide victory over Viktor Orbán’s Fidesz party in the April general election.
Sulyok, who was widely regarded as a close ally of former Prime Minister Viktor Orbán, now has five days to either sign the amendment or refer it to the Constitutional Court. If he chooses the latter, Prime Minister Magyar has warned that the government will initiate impeachment proceedings, which would automatically suspend the president from office.
The government has also urged Sulyok to resign voluntarily to avoid a constitutional crisis.
Opposition lawmakers from the Fidesz party walked out of parliament before the vote, accusing the new government of undermining democratic institutions. Fidesz argued that the constitutional amendment gives the government excessive powers to remove public officials arbitrarily.
Supporters of the amendment, however, say it is aimed at dismantling the network of political loyalists installed during Orbán’s 16 years in power. Former Supreme Court President András Baka said the previous government had weakened independent institutions and that reforms were necessary to restore the rule of law.
In addition to removing the president and the Constitutional Court chief, the amendment also requires Constitutional Court judges over the age of 70 to leave office and bars lawmakers who have served three parliamentary terms from seeking re-election. The latter provision could affect more than half of Fidesz’s current members of parliament.
The constitutional reform package is intended to serve as a transitional framework while Hungary prepares to draft a new constitution over the next two to three years.
Meanwhile, the Fidesz party continues to struggle following its election defeat. Former Prime Minister Viktor Orbán has kept a low public profile since leaving office and was absent from Monday’s parliamentary session. Adding to the party’s challenges, senior Fidesz leader Gergely Gulyás resigned as head of the party’s parliamentary group on the same day.