BUDAPEST, July 13 — The Hungarian parliament passed a constitutional amendment on February 26, 2024, that retroactively created a legal mechanism to remove a sitting president, even as the president in question had already resigned sixteen days earlier. The amendment, approved by a two-thirds majority — 136 votes in favor, 36 against — allows for the early termination of the president’s term, which was set to expire in 2027. The mechanics here are worth dissecting.
On February 10, 2024, President Katalin Novák, a close ally of Prime Minister Viktor Orbán and a member of his Fidesz party, resigned following a scandal over a presidential pardon she granted in April 2023. The pardon was issued to a man convicted of covering up child sexual abuse in a state-run orphanage.
The decision sparked widespread protests in Budapest, with tens of thousands demonstrating against the pardon and, by extension, against the political establishment that had enabled it. Novák was elected in 2022 under Orbán’s Fidesz party. Her term was not due to expire until 2027.
When she resigned, there was no existing legal mechanism to replace her before the scheduled end of her term without changing the rules. The constitutional amendment, which takes effect immediately, also shortens the transition period for a new president, with elections scheduled for March 5, 2024.
Follow the timeline
The sequence matters. Novák resigned on February 10. The constitutional amendment was passed on February 26.
The amendment allows for the early termination of the president’s term — a power that, on closer reading, was applied to a vacancy that already existed. Critics argue this undermines democratic norms, as the constitution was changed specifically to address a political crisis created by one of Orbán’s own appointees.
The Hungarian constitution, originally adopted in 2011 under Orbán, has been amended multiple times, including changes to the judiciary and media laws. This latest amendment fits a pattern of constitutional flexibility that opponents say is designed to consolidate power rather than protect institutional stability.
The political calculus
The move is seen as a response to public outrage and a bid to restore political stability. The catch is that the amendment retroactively validates a process that had no legal basis at the time of Novák’s resignation. The government’s argument appears to be that the amendment simply formalizes what was already necessary — a swift transition to a new president — but critics see it as a constitutional shortcut that sets a precedent for future removals.
Novák, who was elected in 2022, was a close ally of Orbán. Her resignation removed a key figure from the Fidesz leadership, but the amendment ensures that the process of replacing her remains firmly under parliamentary control, where Orbán’s party holds a two-thirds majority.
The elections scheduled for March 5 will determine who fills the remainder of the term. What to watch next: whether the March 5 presidential election produces a candidate who maintains the Orbán line, or whether the scandal has opened space for a more independent figure. The amendment itself, however, remains on the books — a tool that could be used again should another president fall out of favor with the parliamentary majority.
