Hungary’s ruling Fidesz party nominated obscure judge Tamás Sulyok as the country’s new president on Thursday, seeking to calm a political crisis that led to the resignation of the previous head of state, Politico reported.
Hungarian President Katalin Novák resigned earlier this month after it was revealed that she had pardoned a man convicted of covering up child sexual abuse.
The scandal sparked protests in Budapest. Novák’s resignation has not yet been formally accepted by a vote of parliament, but it is likely to take place on 26 February, when the legislative body reconvenes.
Hungary’s ruling Fidesz party has nominated Sulyok, the president of the Constitutional Court of Hungary, to replace Novák. Fidesz parliamentary group leader Máté Kocsis declared on Thursday:
[Sulyok] is best poised to embody the unity of the nation.
Sulyok, 67, was appointed president of Hungary’s Constitutional Court in 2016. He also served as honorary consul of Austria from 2000 to 2014 prior to becoming a member of the Constitutional Court. Sulyok has yet to be formally approved by the Hungarian parliament, but this is largely a formality as Fidesz holds an overwhelming majority.
