Hungarian Opposition Parties Call for Direct Presidential Elections Following Resignation of President Katalin Novák
After the resignation of President Katalin Novák, every opposition party represented in the Hungarian Parliament has urged the implementation of direct presidential elections.
They emphasized that the electorate, not Prime Minister Viktor Orbán, should be responsible for electing the new head of state.
Parties such as the Democratic Coalition, MSZP (Socialist Party), Momentum, and Jobbik - Conservatives have each initiated a signature collection campaign to bring about direct elections for the presidency. Speculation has arisen as to whether there will be a common opposition candidate for president and, if so, who it could be. The day after Novák Katalin's resignation, Dialogue for Hungary - Greens proposed that the republican opposition must nominate a joint candidate for president.
"A common presidential candidate is needed, one who can show a way out of the moral crisis into which Fidesz has thrust the nation," they added. To this end, Dialogue for Hungary - Greens invited opposition parties to a joint consultation.
Our Homeland Movement, not part of the six-party coalition in 2022 and currently outside opposition consultations, did not hesitate to announce their nominee for the presidency.
"Our Homeland Movement nominates Professor Magdolna Csath, an economist and university lecturer, as the new President of the Republic. In her person, Hungary would have a nonpartisan President who has proven her worth through her career. Therefore, we trust that other parties will support the nomination of Professor Csath," Our Homeland Movement announced. It appears very unlikely that any of the former opposition coalition parties will support Magdolna Csath's nomination, and Our Homeland Movement alone doesn't have the forty parliamentary signatures necessary for an official nomination.
MOMENTUM AND DK DECIDE THE MATTER
Momentum was the first to signal that they would not participate in the parliamentary process of nominating a President.
"The Presidency of Momentum Movement has decided that Momentum and its faction will not participate in the parliamentary process of nominating a President. Two out of three Presidents from the ruling party have failed, and we will not assist in seating another rubber-stamper in the Sándor Palace. We need to offer freedom-loving people the chance to directly elect a President, which is a demand of Momentum," the opposition party communicated.
It also became clear that the Democratic Coalition made the same decision as Momentum. Ferenc Gyurcsány, the party's leader, clarified on the ATV program "Straight Talk" that his party considers the current parliament "illegitimate" for the purpose of electing a head of state.
"The new president will only be a half president, feeling that half the country refuses to recognize them as head of state because they were appointed by those who don't take seriously the constitutional bond that the President should be independent and not encroached upon. They are looking for puppets among candidates who are all partisan soldiers, or an exceedingly loyal person to the Prime Minister," Gyurcsány spoke on ATV.
Over the weekend, Ferenc Gyurcsány responded to Novák Katalin's resignation in nineteen points, stating among other things that the content and sovereignty of the presidential role are determined not by the legal regulations or the person holding the office, but by the system's namesake, Viktor Orbán.
"Is it good for Hungary if there is effectively not a President, but an appointee of the Prime Minister? It is not, because inevitably what we see is decisions being made that are contrary to the moral convictions, interests, professional, and public positions of the majority of the country. That's why the people need to elect the President because the President chosen by the people is the servant not of the system, but of the people," Gyurcsány elaborated.
According to Gyurcsány, there's only one thing to do: "Instead of talking, we must act, and we must take the right to elect the President away from those in power, and give it to the people."
LMP DISAGREES SLIGHTLY
Although LMP supports direct presidential elections, Péter Ungár, the party's co-president, stated on his Facebook page:
"there's no practicality to this right now, therefore we must work towards having a President who preserves, rather than divides, our national common ground. In this matter, the responsibility of the governing majority is immense if they nominate another party loyalist, they have learned nothing from the recent scandals."
LMP differs from the other opposition parties on another important issue, as Ungár indicated that they would vote for the constitutional amendment related to presidential pardons announced by Viktor Orbán. However, the co-president added this is not sufficient, and the majority in parliament should accept the LMP's proposal for the justification of pardon cases to be made public.
OPPOSITION ALSO WANTS TO AMEND THE CONSTITUTION
MSZP has pointed out that they have been proposing a system of direct presidential elections since 1989. The socialist party has now announced that they have submitted a constitutional amendment for direct presidential elections.
"The President must embody the unity of the nation and oversee the democratic functioning of the government; thus, the office cannot be held by someone executing the government's will as a party soldier. An important part of restoring the rule of law is that the President needs to be independent from the executive power," MSZP communicated.
The DK also submitted a proposal for direct presidential elections, and their party faction has initiated that the elections be held on the same day as the European parliamentary and municipal elections to minimize the costs on June 9th.
Jobbik - Conservatives also submitted a constitutional amendment for direct presidential elections on the same day of Novák Katalin's resignation.
"The President cannot be a party soldier; their loyalty to the Prime Minister should not determine the choice of President but should be elected with the widest consent of the Hungarian people. Therefore, Hungarian citizens must decide on the person of the President, and the democratic responsibility must reflect in the election," Jobbik announced, calling on all parliamentary parties to support their proposal.
NO COMMON CANDIDATE, BUT A CANDIDATE EXISTS
Since DK and Momentum announced that they would not participate in the parliamentary process of nominating a President, the opposition will certainly not have a common candidate. Without the two parties, there are not enough signatures of forty members of Parliament required for the nomination. According to sources familiar with the opposition discussions, the rivalrous DK and Momentum opposed it mainly because if they agreed to have a common candidate, questions would arise as to why they do not also join the European parliamentary and municipal list.
There was also the argument that the message demanding direct presidential elections (let the people elect the President) would be undermined if, alongside this, the opposition parties proposed their candidate.
Despite the opposition parties not forming a united stance on this issue, the leadership of Dialogue for Hungary - Greens decided not to forego the opportunity to nominate a candidate.
"Dialogue for Hungary Greens is committed to direct presidential elections as mentioned in the 2022 common opposition program and if this is realized, we nominate JENŐ KALTENBACH, a legal scholar and university professor, as a candidate. We believe that the next President of Hungary must be a worthy, autonomous individual, keeping in sight the interests of the whole Hungarian society," the party announced on Tuesday afternoon.
Dialogue for Hungary - Greens believes that in the current deep moral and political crisis, the presidential position can only be filled by a person of unwavering republican principles, who does not fulfil party orders, but truly represents national unity.
"A person who does not serve the powerful, but defends the defenseless. A person who prioritizes the interests of the country and the entire Hungarian society. Kaltenbach Jenő was the parliamentary commissioner for national and ethnic minority rights for over ten years, then chairman of the Independent Police Complaints Board. With him, we can offer an alternative to the corrupt and inhumane Orbán system and its partisan soldiers," reads the party's statement.
COMMON PROTEST PLANNED
Opposition parties also agree that a parliamentary investigative committee must be established to review the preparation and countersignature practices of presidential pardons. This was first raised by MSZP, which informed in a statement that it had collected the necessary forty parliamentary signatures for their initiative. "We must not overlook the responsibility of Viktor Orbán either, because he put both Katalin Novák and Judit Varga in their positions," MSZP's Tuesday statement read.
The parliamentary resolution proposal can be found on the Parliament's website, signed by MSZP, DK, Jobbik, LMP, Momentum, and Dialogue politicians.
Moreover, according to Index, opposition parties are planning a joint demonstration in support of direct presidential elections.
FIDESZ CLAIMS OPPOSITION'S CREDIBILITY IS QUESTIONABLE
Máté Kocsis, the leader of the Fidesz parliamentary group according to MTI news digest recently said on Kossuth Radio regarding direct presidential elections: DK and MSZP should not bring this up, because when they were in government, they didn't think of it. According to the government party politician, it would be odd to participate in the "game" of "when the left governs, they elect the president, when not, then the people should elect". He added: this demand would be credible if they had remembered it when they provided a parliamentary majority.
Parties such as the Democratic Coalition, MSZP (Socialist Party), Momentum, and Jobbik - Conservatives have each initiated a signature collection campaign to bring about direct elections for the presidency. Speculation has arisen as to whether there will be a common opposition candidate for president and, if so, who it could be. The day after Novák Katalin's resignation, Dialogue for Hungary - Greens proposed that the republican opposition must nominate a joint candidate for president.
"A common presidential candidate is needed, one who can show a way out of the moral crisis into which Fidesz has thrust the nation," they added. To this end, Dialogue for Hungary - Greens invited opposition parties to a joint consultation.
Our Homeland Movement, not part of the six-party coalition in 2022 and currently outside opposition consultations, did not hesitate to announce their nominee for the presidency.
"Our Homeland Movement nominates Professor Magdolna Csath, an economist and university lecturer, as the new President of the Republic. In her person, Hungary would have a nonpartisan President who has proven her worth through her career. Therefore, we trust that other parties will support the nomination of Professor Csath," Our Homeland Movement announced. It appears very unlikely that any of the former opposition coalition parties will support Magdolna Csath's nomination, and Our Homeland Movement alone doesn't have the forty parliamentary signatures necessary for an official nomination.
MOMENTUM AND DK DECIDE THE MATTER
Momentum was the first to signal that they would not participate in the parliamentary process of nominating a President.
"The Presidency of Momentum Movement has decided that Momentum and its faction will not participate in the parliamentary process of nominating a President. Two out of three Presidents from the ruling party have failed, and we will not assist in seating another rubber-stamper in the Sándor Palace. We need to offer freedom-loving people the chance to directly elect a President, which is a demand of Momentum," the opposition party communicated.
It also became clear that the Democratic Coalition made the same decision as Momentum. Ferenc Gyurcsány, the party's leader, clarified on the ATV program "Straight Talk" that his party considers the current parliament "illegitimate" for the purpose of electing a head of state.
"The new president will only be a half president, feeling that half the country refuses to recognize them as head of state because they were appointed by those who don't take seriously the constitutional bond that the President should be independent and not encroached upon. They are looking for puppets among candidates who are all partisan soldiers, or an exceedingly loyal person to the Prime Minister," Gyurcsány spoke on ATV.
Over the weekend, Ferenc Gyurcsány responded to Novák Katalin's resignation in nineteen points, stating among other things that the content and sovereignty of the presidential role are determined not by the legal regulations or the person holding the office, but by the system's namesake, Viktor Orbán.
"Is it good for Hungary if there is effectively not a President, but an appointee of the Prime Minister? It is not, because inevitably what we see is decisions being made that are contrary to the moral convictions, interests, professional, and public positions of the majority of the country. That's why the people need to elect the President because the President chosen by the people is the servant not of the system, but of the people," Gyurcsány elaborated.
According to Gyurcsány, there's only one thing to do: "Instead of talking, we must act, and we must take the right to elect the President away from those in power, and give it to the people."
LMP DISAGREES SLIGHTLY
Although LMP supports direct presidential elections, Péter Ungár, the party's co-president, stated on his Facebook page:
"there's no practicality to this right now, therefore we must work towards having a President who preserves, rather than divides, our national common ground. In this matter, the responsibility of the governing majority is immense if they nominate another party loyalist, they have learned nothing from the recent scandals."
LMP differs from the other opposition parties on another important issue, as Ungár indicated that they would vote for the constitutional amendment related to presidential pardons announced by Viktor Orbán. However, the co-president added this is not sufficient, and the majority in parliament should accept the LMP's proposal for the justification of pardon cases to be made public.
OPPOSITION ALSO WANTS TO AMEND THE CONSTITUTION
MSZP has pointed out that they have been proposing a system of direct presidential elections since 1989. The socialist party has now announced that they have submitted a constitutional amendment for direct presidential elections.
"The President must embody the unity of the nation and oversee the democratic functioning of the government; thus, the office cannot be held by someone executing the government's will as a party soldier. An important part of restoring the rule of law is that the President needs to be independent from the executive power," MSZP communicated.
The DK also submitted a proposal for direct presidential elections, and their party faction has initiated that the elections be held on the same day as the European parliamentary and municipal elections to minimize the costs on June 9th.
Jobbik - Conservatives also submitted a constitutional amendment for direct presidential elections on the same day of Novák Katalin's resignation.
"The President cannot be a party soldier; their loyalty to the Prime Minister should not determine the choice of President but should be elected with the widest consent of the Hungarian people. Therefore, Hungarian citizens must decide on the person of the President, and the democratic responsibility must reflect in the election," Jobbik announced, calling on all parliamentary parties to support their proposal.
NO COMMON CANDIDATE, BUT A CANDIDATE EXISTS
Since DK and Momentum announced that they would not participate in the parliamentary process of nominating a President, the opposition will certainly not have a common candidate. Without the two parties, there are not enough signatures of forty members of Parliament required for the nomination. According to sources familiar with the opposition discussions, the rivalrous DK and Momentum opposed it mainly because if they agreed to have a common candidate, questions would arise as to why they do not also join the European parliamentary and municipal list.
There was also the argument that the message demanding direct presidential elections (let the people elect the President) would be undermined if, alongside this, the opposition parties proposed their candidate.
Despite the opposition parties not forming a united stance on this issue, the leadership of Dialogue for Hungary - Greens decided not to forego the opportunity to nominate a candidate.
"Dialogue for Hungary Greens is committed to direct presidential elections as mentioned in the 2022 common opposition program and if this is realized, we nominate JENŐ KALTENBACH, a legal scholar and university professor, as a candidate. We believe that the next President of Hungary must be a worthy, autonomous individual, keeping in sight the interests of the whole Hungarian society," the party announced on Tuesday afternoon.
Dialogue for Hungary - Greens believes that in the current deep moral and political crisis, the presidential position can only be filled by a person of unwavering republican principles, who does not fulfil party orders, but truly represents national unity.
"A person who does not serve the powerful, but defends the defenseless. A person who prioritizes the interests of the country and the entire Hungarian society. Kaltenbach Jenő was the parliamentary commissioner for national and ethnic minority rights for over ten years, then chairman of the Independent Police Complaints Board. With him, we can offer an alternative to the corrupt and inhumane Orbán system and its partisan soldiers," reads the party's statement.
COMMON PROTEST PLANNED
Opposition parties also agree that a parliamentary investigative committee must be established to review the preparation and countersignature practices of presidential pardons. This was first raised by MSZP, which informed in a statement that it had collected the necessary forty parliamentary signatures for their initiative. "We must not overlook the responsibility of Viktor Orbán either, because he put both Katalin Novák and Judit Varga in their positions," MSZP's Tuesday statement read.
The parliamentary resolution proposal can be found on the Parliament's website, signed by MSZP, DK, Jobbik, LMP, Momentum, and Dialogue politicians.
Moreover, according to Index, opposition parties are planning a joint demonstration in support of direct presidential elections.
FIDESZ CLAIMS OPPOSITION'S CREDIBILITY IS QUESTIONABLE
Máté Kocsis, the leader of the Fidesz parliamentary group according to MTI news digest recently said on Kossuth Radio regarding direct presidential elections: DK and MSZP should not bring this up, because when they were in government, they didn't think of it. According to the government party politician, it would be odd to participate in the "game" of "when the left governs, they elect the president, when not, then the people should elect". He added: this demand would be credible if they had remembered it when they provided a parliamentary majority.
