Hungary's parliament elects Andras Baka, once dismissed by Orban, as new president

Hungary's parliament has elected Andras Baka as the country's new president, with 140 lawmakers voting in favor and six against.

Baka served as a judge at the European Court of Human Rights from 1991 to 2008. In 2009 he became president of Hungary's Supreme Court, but was removed from that position in 2012 after criticizing the Orban government's decision to lower the mandatory retirement age for judges from 70 to 62. At the time, Baka described the move as a purge of the judiciary.

Another candidate declined

Before Baka's election, Prime Minister Peter Magyar had invited former chess champion Judit Polgar to run for the presidency, but she turned down the offer. Magyar faced criticism at the time for not holding the public consultation he had promised before proposing a candidate.

Interim mandate pending new constitution

According to Magyar, the new president will serve only part of a full term - until work is completed on a new constitution intended to replace the basic law adopted during the Orban era. The new document is meant to be drafted with broad public involvement, and the prime minister estimates the process will take around a year to eighteen months. He has pledged to launch the public consultation on the constitution next month.

Baka's election was made possible after constitutional amendments passed in July ended the term of the previous president, Tamas Sulyok, on July 20. The amendments were pushed through by the ruling Tisza party in order to remove Sulyok, who was seen as an Orban supporter and had been elected president in 2024 with backing from Orban's Fidesz party.