**Hungary's President Tamás Sulyok to Resign Following Parliamentary Vote**
Hungary's President Tamás Sulyok has agreed to resign after the parliament voted to amend the constitution, a change that will officially end his presidency at midnight on Sunday. The decision comes in the wake of a significant political shift following the April elections, which saw Prime Minister Péter Magyar's Tisza party achieve a decisive victory.
Sulyok's resignation was precipitated by the Tisza party's use of its parliamentary majority to push through a law that not only removes him from office but also affects other key judicial positions. The amendment will dismiss Sulyok and the head of the Constitutional Court, Péter Polt, while also mandating the removal of judges over the age of 70. Furthermore, it prohibits deputies who have served three terms in parliament from running again, a rule that impacts more than half of the current Fidesz party deputies.
The political landscape in Hungary has dramatically changed since the Tisza party's victory, which ended the long-standing rule of Viktor Orbán, who had been in power for 16 years. Sulyok, seen as a loyalist to Orbán, faced mounting pressure from the new government, which accused him of being a puppet of the former regime.
In a statement made shortly before the deadline for signing the amendment, Sulyok expressed his concerns about the legality of the process, accusing Magyar's government of undermining the rule of law. He was given a five-day window to sign the amendment to avoid a potential constitutional crisis and impeachment proceedings.
The political turmoil has drawn criticism from various quarters, including Orbán himself, who characterized the amendment as an act of tyranny and called for public protests against the government's actions. Since the April elections, Orbán's party has struggled to regain its footing, with the former prime minister largely absent from public view and declining to take his seat in parliament.
The developments in Hungary reflect a broader trend of significant constitutional changes under the Tisza government, which has moved swiftly to consolidate its power in the wake of its electoral success. The implications of these changes on Hungary's political landscape and judicial independence remain to be seen as the country navigates this new chapter in its governance.