“During this transitional period, I will do my utmost to carry out the duties entrusted to me in a balanced and impartial manner, serving the interests of the country,” Ágnes Forsthoffer, Speaker of the National Assembly wrote after Amendment 17 to the Fundamental Law entered into force with the signature of President of the Republic Tamás Sulyok.
With this amendment, President Tamás Sulyok’s term of office ended at 00:00 hours on Monday, and until the new head of state takes office, the Speaker of the National Assembly will exercise the duties of the President of the Republic.
During this transitional period, Ágnes Forsthoffer, as President of the Republic, will serve as Commander-in-Chief of the Hungarian Armed Forces and will represent Hungary in diplomatic negotiations. One of her most important – and by no means merely ceremonial – duties is to sign and promulgate laws and amendments passed by the National Assembly. If she disagrees with a bill, she may exercise his veto power to return it to Parliament for reconsideration or refer it to the Constitutional Court for review. It would be a major surprise if, as vice president of the Tisza Party, she was to do so in the coming weeks. It is also unlikely that she would exercise his presidential power of clemency during this period, the news portal telex.hu writes in a summary.
However, acting on behalf of the President of the Republic, she may address sessions of the National Assembly, initiate legislation and national referendums, and make numerous personnel decisions. The President of the Republic nominates the President of the Supreme Court and the President of the National Judicial Office, as well as the Prosecutor General and the Commissioner for Fundamental Rights; he or she appoints ministers, professional judges, the President and Vice Presidents of the Hungarian National Bank, and the President of the Fiscal Council.
The National Assembly will elect a new President of the Republic by secret ballot within thirty days; the new President will take office on the eighth day following the announcement of the election results. Ágnes Forsthoffer’s interim tenure will thus last for a maximum of 38 days, until August 26. However, Prime Minister Péter Magyar had previously promised that a new president would definitely be in office before August 20, and thus, the transitional period is expected to be shorter.
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