Hungary approves eight-year limit for prime ministers
The constitutional amendment blocks Viktor Orban from returning as premier after 16 years in office, according to Al Jazeera and AFP.
By Daniel Okafor · Business Editor
3 min read
Hungary’s parliament approved a constitutional amendment on Monday that caps prime ministers at eight years in office. Al Jazeera and AFP reported that the change effectively prevents former Prime Minister Viktor Orban from returning to the post after his 16-year rule.
The measure passed with broad support despite opposition from Orban’s Fidesz party. According to Al Jazeera and AFP, 150 members of parliament voted in favor, 50 opposed it and six abstained.
The limit was a central campaign pledge of Prime Minister Peter Magyar’s Tisza party, which won parliamentary elections in April. Al Jazeera and AFP reported that the vote ended Orban’s 16 years in power and gave Tisza a constitutional majority in parliament.
Magyar moves to reset Hungary’s politics
Magyar has made political reform one of his first major priorities as prime minister, according to Al Jazeera and AFP. The reports said he is also seeking better relations between Budapest and the European Union after years of disputes under Orban.
In his first weeks in office, Magyar pledged to lead Hungary toward adopting the euro, according to Al Jazeera and AFP. Last week, he also agreed to end Hungary’s longstanding veto of Ukraine’s EU accession process, and Kyiv formally began that process on Monday.
Al Jazeera and AFP described Orban’s government as pro-Russian and illiberal, and said his time in office had repeatedly complicated EU efforts, including the bloc’s support for Ukraine. The constitutional change means any political comeback by Orban cannot include another term as prime minister under the new limit.
Sovereignty office also targeted
The same parliamentary vote also cleared the way for other changes, including the planned dismantling of Hungary’s Sovereignty Protection Office, according to Al Jazeera and AFP. The office was created in 2023 under Orban’s government to protect Hungary from what it called foreign influence.
Al Jazeera and AFP reported that the office was used to investigate journalists and nongovernmental organizations critical of Orban. Lawmakers on Monday voted to remove the constitutional provision behind the office, which had called for an independent body to safeguard Hungary’s constitutional identity.
Human Rights Watch included the office’s closure on an April list of steps it said Hungary’s new government should take, according to Al Jazeera and AFP. The rights group said those measures were needed to reverse what it described as a human rights crisis under Orban.
MPs are expected to vote later this month on a bill to dissolve the agency, Al Jazeera and AFP reported.
Orban was re-elected as leader of Fidesz on Saturday despite the party’s April election defeat. After Monday’s vote, he wrote on social media: “The Orban law has been passed. That was the most pressing issue… If I’m needed, I’ll be here,” according to Al Jazeera and AFP.
This story draws on original reporting from Al Jazeera.