Hungarian parliament votes for 8-year term limit that would stop Orbán returning

Hungarian lawmakers on Monday passed a constitutional amendment that would ban Viktor Orbán from returning to power.

The amendment, approved by 135 votes in favor and 50 against, would limit prime ministers to just eight years in office if it becomes law. The amendment is written to apply retroactively, meaning that Viktor Orbán could not return as Hungary’s prime minister. Orbán served as prime minister for a total of 20 years.

“The restoration of the rule of law will not be born from a single law, but every true democratic reconstruction has symbolic and constitutional pillars. This proposal aims to be such a pillar,” the amendment’s sponsor, MP Márton Melléthei-Barna, said when the law was first proposed.

With a two-thirds majority in Hungary’s parliament, Prime Minister Peter Magyar has been racing to cement the changes he promised during his campaign, which he dubbed a crusade for “regime change.” The two-thirds majority in parliament allows him to push through constitutional amendments, paving the way for major changes in Budapest.

Tisza’s first constitutional amendment could effectively end Orbán’s chances of returning as prime minister, just days after he was reelected as party chair of Fidesz over the weekend. At the same time, the move would be a significant limit on Magyar’s own power, as he vows to restore liberal democracy in Hungary.

But some critics have suggested that the amendment cannot apply to prime ministers who were in office before it was passed, meaning that Orbán could still run for Hungary’s top job. 

The amendment will now head to the desk of Tamás Sulyok, the Fidesz-appointed president of Hungary. Magyar is currently trying to oust Sulyok and other Orbán-appointed officials as he cleans house in the new government. Sulyok has refused Magyar’s request to resign voluntarily. Should Sulyok return the legislation to lawmakers, they could overrule his concerns in a second vote. 

Monday’s amendment also seeks to abolish the government’s Sovereign Protection Office, which the European Commission has said violates EU law and critics say has been used by the Orbán regime to consolidate power. The amendment also allows the government to dismantle public trust foundations, vehicles that Orbán used to privatize universities and put them in the hands of his party members.