Hungary’s parliament elected a new president on Monday after previous head of state Katalin Novák resigned over the child sex abuse pardon scandal.
Lawmakers approved the presidential appointment of 67-year-old Tamás Sulyok, a lawyer who previously served as head of Hungary’s Constitutional Court, in a secret vote. 134 lawmakers voted in favour of Sulyok’s appointment, with 5 casting votes against.
However, some opposition parties refused to participate in the vote, calling for direct presidential elections instead of appointments by parliamentary vote.
The president’s role in Hungary is largely ceremonial, although he has the power to send legislation back to lawmakers or to the Constitutional Court for review. During the speech, Sulyok mentioned alleged problems with the rule of law and democracy in Hungary that prompted the European Union to freeze billions of dollars in funding.
We can see how the correctly defined concept of the rule of law is being lost, transformed from an ideal into an idol in today’s Europe as part of a purely utilitarian political approach.
Sulyok is expected to officially take office on 5 March.
The election of a new president comes after Hungary’s previous head of state, Katalin Novák, resigned on 10 February amid a high-profile public uproar over a pardon she granted to a man convicted of helping cover up the sexual abuse of children at a state-run orphanage. The decision provoked an unprecedented political scandal.
