by Stefan J. Bos, Worthy News Europe Bureau Chief
BUDAPEST (Worthy News) – András Baka, a former chief justice of Hungary’s Supreme Court, is due to become the country’s next president after the governing Tisza Party agreed on his nomination.
Baka, 73, is expected to be elected to the largely ceremonial position by Parliament on Tuesday.
It is another symbolic step in Prime Minister Péter Magyar’s effort to dismantle former Prime Minister Viktor Orbán’s bastions of power, a move Magyar says voters endorsed when his party won a landslide victory in the April elections.
Saturday’s nomination marked a major comeback for Baka.
The former judge at the European Court of Human Rights was removed as head of Hungary’s Supreme Court by Orbán’s government in 2011, three years before the end of his mandate.
BAKA PRAISED FOR EXPERIENCE
However, Tisza lawmakers said Baka has always “attached paramount importance to the principle of the separation of powers, consistently standing up for the rule of law and judicial independence.”
“We are convinced that Dr. András Baka’s experience and the professional independence he has demonstrated throughout his career represent a significant asset at a time when we are preparing to jointly lay the foundations for Hungary’s new constitutional order,” they added.
Magyar, whose election victory ended Orbán’s 16-year rule, has vowed to restore democratic standards while calling for the resignation of officials appointed or elected by Orbán’s party.
Removing former President Tamás Sulyok was a key goal of Magyar, who called him a “puppet” of Orbán. Orbán’s Fidesz party condemned the move and pledged to boycott Tuesday’s presidential vote in Parliament.
Sulyok reluctantly signed the constitutional amendment passed by Magyar’s ruling party that ended his own presidency last month.
PROTESTS AGAINST AMENDMENT
The amendment says the new president will remain in office until a new constitution takes effect, or for a maximum of five years.
However, there have been protests against amending the current Constitution, known in Hungary as the Fundamental Law, and against the removal of the previous president, an Orbán ally.
Thousands of Sulyok supporters recently gathered outside Budapest’s Sándor Palace, the official residence of the president, as witnessed by Worthy News.
Protester Bence Rétvári, parliamentary leader of the Christian Democratic People’s Party (KDNP), condemned the “modification of the Hungarian Fundamental Law,” telling Worthy News: “There is no precedent in Europe like this.”
He told Worthy News that “with one sentence, they throw out the president of the republic. It has never happened in the European Union.”
SULYOK RESPONDS
In a message to the nation, Sulyok shared those concerns but said he had no constitutional means to challenge the move leading to his dismissal.
“I have no constitutional means to challenge this amendment, which violates constitutional principles but was adopted by the National Assembly—the body empowered to amend the Constitution—through a lawful procedure,” he stressed.
While the role is largely ceremonial, the president can veto legislation and serves as commander in chief of Hungary’s armed forces.
Copyright 1999-2026 Worthy News. This article was originally published on Worthy News and was reproduced with permission.
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