Tisza, the party currently governing in Hungary, has appointed former Supreme Court president András Baka as the new head of state, in one of the final steps to dismantle the power structures erected by former Prime Minister Viktor Orbán, according to the current head of government, Peter Magyar. Among those structures is the already former president Tamas Sulyok.
Magyar's party holds 141 of the 199 seats in Parliament, so the vote to confirm Baka, scheduled for next Tuesday in the chamber, will be practically a procedural formality. Last month, Sulyok signed the constitutional reform promoted by Tisza that put an end to his own presidential term.
Baka served as president of the Supreme Court from 2009 to 2011, when he was removed from office for his criticisms of Orbán's government, a dismissal that the European Court of Human Rights declared unjustified three years later. Previously, the jurist had been a judge of the European court itself from 1991 to 2008.
"Throughout his entire life trajectory, András Baka has considered the principle of separation of powers to be of utmost importance, consistently defending the rule of law and judicial independence," Magyar stated in his announcement, published on social media.
"We need a president of the Republic whose professional authority, independence, and experience in public and constitutional law provide a solid foundation to successfully return our country to the path of the rule of law and constitutionalism," he added.