Members of the Hungarian Parliament have elected the former President of the Supreme Court, 73-year-old András Baku, as the country’s President; he had been nominated for the post by the ruling Tisza Party.
The post of ceremonial head of state became vacant after the country’s new Prime Minister, Péter Magyar, secured the resignation of Tamás Szujok, who was close to the previous Hungarian Prime Minister, Viktor Orbán. Szujok’s term of office was cut short following the adoption of a constitutional amendment.
Orbán’s Fidesz party and its allies in parliament claimed that Shuyok’s removal was “illegal”. They boycotted the vote on the new presidential candidate.
András Baka worked at the European Court of Human Rights (ECHR) for 17 years. In 2009, he was appointed President of the Supreme Court. However, he was removed from office just three years later. This followed Baka’s criticism of the Orbán government’s initiative to lower the mandatory retirement age for judges from 70 to 62.
In Hungary, the President primarily performs ceremonial and representative functions. Executive power lies with the government, headed by the Prime Minister. Péter Magyar has held this post since May.