Former Prime Minister Viktor Orbán has declared that he will not recognise the legitimacy of Hungary’s new president following Parliament’s approval of the 17th amendment to the Fundamental Law, which allows the head of state to be removed from office under certain circumstances.

The constitutional amendment, adopted by Hungary’s Parliament on Monday, introduces a legal mechanism for dismissing the president, a move the governing Tisza Party says is intended to dismantle institutional structures established during the previous administration. The amendment has prompted strong criticism from Fidesz and its allies.

Although a demonstration in support of President Tamás Sulyok was organised in Budapest, Orbán did not attend. Instead, while travelling in the United States for the closing stages of the FIFA World Cup, he published a series of Facebook posts condemning the constitutional changes.

Orbán refuses to recognise new president

In his statement, Orbán argued that any successor appointed following the removal of the current president would lack legitimacy.

“We will never recognise the violent methods of authoritarianism as legitimate or lawful. A new president installed unlawfully cannot be legitimate, and therefore neither can their decisions.”

He added that if the president were removed from office “by force”, Hungary would have “the right to resist”, concluding: “And we will do so.”

Orbán did not explain what form such resistance would take.

Warning of authoritarianism

In a separate Facebook post, the former prime minister claimed that the constitutional amendment represented a broader threat to democratic checks and balances.

“Today they are targeting the president of the republic, but tomorrow they could do the same to anyone,” he wrote. “Authoritarian power tolerates neither criticism nor oversight. Those in power want tools that would allow them to take away anyone’s job or confiscate anyone’s business.”

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Government and opposition remain at odds

For weeks, the opposition party has argued that the government’s plans, including replacing senior officials appointed by the previous administration and creating a National Asset Recovery Office, amount to a wider campaign against those associated with the former government.

The government, meanwhile, maintains that the constitutional amendment and related reforms are designed to restore democratic accountability and dismantle what it describes as entrenched political influence built up during Fidesz’s 16 years in power.

According to recent polling by Medián, Fidesz’s messaging on the issue has so far failed to gain significant traction among voters.

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