The effort to change the method of electing the Hungarian president through universal suffrage failed at the electoral commission. Referring to the historical precedent from 2015, she declared the plebiscite legally inadmissible, as it would deprive the parliament of its exclusive constitutional authority.
The Hungarian National Electoral Commission (NVB) refused to legitimize the nationwide referendum on the introduction of direct election of the president by voters. With reference to the 24.hu server, the correspondent of TASR in Budapest informs about it.
- The Hungarian National Electoral Commission rejected the nationwide referendum on the direct election of the president.
- The Hungarian constitution stipulates that the president is elected by the parliament, not by a direct vote of the citizens.
- Prime Minister Péter Magyar threatens to dismiss President Tamás Sulyok by a parliamentary majority.
NBS: The position of the president and the method of his election are firmly enshrined in the constitution
The commission led by chairman Róbert Sasvári confirmed the formal correctness of the initiative, but decided that a popular vote on this issue could not be held.
NVB stated in the decision that the current Hungarian constitution clearly stipulates that the head of state is elected by the parliament, and it is not possible to change or supplement the constitution through a referendum.
“A successful referendum would force the parliament to give up its exclusive constitutional authority to elect the president, which according to the NVB is legally impermissible. The position of the president and the method of his election are firmly enshrined in the constitution, therefore they are protected from changes through a referendum,” the justification for the decision reads.
Magyar called on the current president to resign
With this decision, NVB followed up on the historical precedent from 2015, when it rejected an almost identical question for the same reasons.
Prime Minister Péter Magyar, after his victory in the parliamentary elections in April, called on President Tamás Sulyok to voluntarily resign by midnight on May 31, 2026. As the head of state refused his call, the prime minister announced his readiness to launch legal and constitutional processes to remove him through a two-thirds majority in parliament.
