Will the newly elected President change Hungary’s position towards Ukraine?


An important event took place in Hungary – a new President was elected. Considering the difficult relations between Hungary and Ukraine, the world community is watching with great attention what this change of faces will change, whether it will be a new start or, on the contrary, worsen the situation. What is known about Tamás Sulyok who is now the head of Hungary?


Quick finale

It should be noted that the President in Hungary is not elected directly by the will of the people, but indirectly: representatives of the State Assembly listen to the candidate’s presentation, and then they vote. This time the procedure was carried out quickly; it is connected with the resignation of the previous President Katalin Novák, which took place on February 10. The reason was the resonance caused by her decision to pardon a convicted pedophile, after which Novak renounced the presidency.

It took 12 days to decide on a new candidate, so on February 22, the leader of the faction “Fidesz – Hungarian Civic Alliance” Máté Kocsis announced that Tamás Sulyok would be nominated for the position of President. Such a lightning speed of unfolding events reduced all preparation to a minimum:

1. On the one hand, it spared society from aggravating disputes and mudslinging among candidates, as is almost always the case.

2. On the other hand, many analysts believe that the candidate and his approval were prepared before. If we consider the corrupt climate of the country, such a possibility is not excluded.

So, four days passed from the nomination to the election itself, and already on February 26, voting took place. As always, it was conducted secretly but the result is known – the candidate received 134 votes, and only 5 people voted against it.


What to expect?

And now the main question is what changes in Ukraine should be expected against the background of the re-election of the Hungarian President? Unfortunately, almost none. This is due to its main functions:

– performance of mainly ceremonial duties;

– remote monitoring of the implementation of democratic norms in the republic.

In essence, the President of Hungary is something like the Monarch of Great Britain, who has practically no influence on politics. His mission is to be a symbol of the unity of the nation. Direct power in Hungary is concentrated in the government, especially in the hands of the prime minister. Now, this is Viktor Orbán, who will not leave his post.

The parliament elects the president for five years, and he is prohibited from holding office more than twice. But if you notice the age of Tamás Sulyok (he is now 67 years old), you can understand that a third term, most likely, would not be in question in his case.

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