Hungarian PM Magyar submits 17th constitutional amendment; Orbán decries 'autocracy'

BUDAPEST – Prime Minister Péter Magyar submitted his government's 17th constitutional amendment to parliament before departing for the NATO summit in Turkey this week.

Magyar will remain abroad for a subsequent four-day family holiday, leaving Deputy Prime Minister Bálint Ruff to run the country in his absence.

Key Provisions of the Amendment

The newly submitted amendment has sent shockwaves through Hungarian public life. Magyar described it as a vital step to "free Hungary from the system that held the state captive, looted the nation, and occupied the democratic system for decades."

Presidential Mandate

One clause targets President Tamás Sulyok directly. "The mandate of the incumbent President of the Republic shall terminate on the day following the entry into force of the 17th Amendment to the Fundamental Law," it stated.

Term Limits and Age Restrictions

The package also includes:

• A maximum of 12 years (three terms) in office for members of parliament
• A 70-year age limit for constitutional judges

This age cap would immediately terminate the mandates of Chief Prosecutor Péter Polt, who was appointed during the Orbán era, and three other judges.

Judicial Reforms

Furthermore, the amendment:

• Restores the right of Constitutional Court judges to elect their own president
• Elevates the role of ordinary judges in selecting and recalling top judicial leaders
• Establishes the constitutional basis for the new National Asset Recovery and Protection Office

Symbolic Changes

It also reverses several Orbán-era symbolic changes, including:

• Renaming "counties" back to megye from the historic vármegye
• Abolishing the parliamentary guard
• Abolishing the Budget Council's veto power

Legislative Process

Magyar revealed that the government utilized artificial intelligence to process over 23,000 public suggestions gathered during a brief five-day consultation period. Ruff initiated an urgent debate for Tuesday, meaning the package could pass as early as next week given the Tisza party's commanding parliamentary supermajority.

Opposition Response

Viktor Orbán, the former prime minister, condemned the move as "Tisza autocracy" and called for a mass protest in front of the presidential Sándor Palace on Thursday. "Tisza is crossing every human, moral, and rule-of-law boundary," Orbán wrote.

Fidesz faction leader Gergely Gulyás echoed the warning, calling the bill "the end of constitutional democracy and the beginning of autocracy in Hungary." Gulyás warned that limiting MP terms would disqualify over half of the current opposition lawmakers from running again.

Deputy Prime Minister's Actions

While Magyar is abroad, Ruff has been highly active. Exercising his newly acquired founder's rights, the minister signed a resolution to formally dissolve the Fidesz-linked Mathias Corvinus Collegium (MCC) Foundation, which funds a Brussels-based think tank, by 31 July 2026.

(bw)