Hungarian president signs law limiting PM's time in office

“The President of the Republic may review an amendment to the Fundamental Law solely in light of the procedural requirements set forth in the Fundamental Law regarding its enactment,”—Hungarian President Tamás Sulyok stated in a Facebook post published on behalf of his office in relation to the Tisza government’s amendment to the Fundamental Law, which regulates the length of time a person may serve as prime minister, effectively blocking Viktor Orbán from returning to the office. Sulyok continued the post by noting that the amendment to the Fundamental Law was in compliance with the aforementioned requirements.

With regard to the eight-year limit, Sulyok wrote that “the regulatory solution chosen is considered almost unique both in Europe and the world,” and went on to explain that “the basis of the parliamentary system of government is that the mandate of the Prime Minister and the government depends on the confidence of the National Assembly, which is coupled with the government’s accountability towards the National Assembly.” In his view, since Parliament has a supervisory function, no European parliamentary democracy has ever deemed it necessary to impose a term limit on the prime minister.

He went on to explain that a Parliament's decision on selecting a prime minister “can be regarded as one of the most significant, indirect expressions of the will of the people. Limiting the number of terms a prime minister can serve also means placing limits on this decision.” He noted, however, that “the Fundamental Law does not prohibit the introduction of restrictions on the right to hold public office.” The post concludes by stating that President Sulyok signed the amendment to the Fundamental Law and ordered its publication in the Hungarian Official Gazette. The law takes effect once it is published there.