‘We propose Tamás Sulyok, President of the Constitutional Court, as Head of State,’ Fidesz parliamentary group leader Máté Kocsis announced at the off-site parliamentary group meeting of the governing parties held in Balatonalmádi on Thursday. He recalled that the National Assembly would decide on the resignation of the former head of state on 26 February. Kocsis emphasized that the nomination process would also depend on whether the opposition parties put forward a candidate, and the date of the election could be set accordingly.
The group leader also announced that Tamás Deutsch would be proposed as the leader of the Fidesz–KDNP list for the European Parliament elections in June.
Balázs Orbán, the Prime Minister’s political director, also shared the news of Sulyok’s nomination on X.
President Katalin Novák resigned on 10 February after a clemency decision rendered her incapable of fulfilling her primary duty—maintaining the unity of the nation. The former president pardoned the deputy director of the Bicske children’s home, who had aided in covering up the director’s paedophilic crimes. Novák’s resignation was followed by that of former Justice Minister Judit Varga, who countersigned the presidential pardon. According to preliminary press reports, prior to the scandal, Judit Varga would have led the Fidesz–KDNP list for the European Parliament elections.
Following the pardon decision, Viktor Orbán announced that a constitutional amendment would be introduced to ensure that no presidential pardon would be granted to perpetrators of paedophilic crimes. In this context, Máté Kocsis stated at the meeting that
penalties for paedophilic offenses would be further tightened.
It is proposed that offenses committed against individuals under 18 should never become statute-barred, that there should be no possibility of release before completing the sentence, and that the Constitution will explicitly exclude the possibility of pardons. Additionally, it is proposed that perpetrators of such crimes should never again be eligible to obtain a certificate of good conduct.
Tamás Sulyok was elected as a member of the Constitutional Court by parliament on 27 September 2014 and was subsequently elected President of the Constitutional Court on 22 November 2016, as proposed by House Speaker László Kövér.
According to the Constitution, the election of the President of the Republic is the responsibility of the Hungarian National Assembly. The nomination of the president requires the recommendation of one-fifth of the Members of Parliament. In the first round, a candidate can become head of state if he or she obtains two-thirds of the votes cast—which the governing parties currently hold. In the second round, only the two candidates with the highest number of votes in the first round may take part, and a majority is required to become president.
