Budapest, 26 February 2024 (dpa/MIA) - The new president of Hungary will be the current president of the Constitutional Court, Tamás Sulyok, after parliament elected the 67-year-old as expected on Monday with 134 votes.

Five members of parliament voted against Sulyok's election, and several opposition groups stayed away from the vote.

Sulyok, who was put forward by the Fidesz party of right-wing populist Prime Minister Viktor Orbán, was the only candidate for the post.

His predecessor, Katalin Novák, resigned just over a fortnight ago due to the uproar caused by her pardon of a man convicted of being an accomplice to child sex abuse.

The term of office for Hungarian presidents is five years and their role is largely representative. Sulyok takes office on March 5, until when Parliamentary Speaker László Kövér will be acting head of state.

Sulyok is known as a supporter of Orbán's policies. In 2023, the Constitutional Court under his leadership passed a judgement to the detriment of the Central European University (CEU), which had been operating in Budapest for years and had to relocate most of its operations to Vienna from 2019 due to harassment by Orbán's government.

The Constitutional Court ruled that the university had not been the victim of a breach of the law as a result. Orbán, who is a proponent of what he calls an "illiberal" form of government, was a thorn in the side of the university because it represented liberal values and was also founded and financed by US-Hungarian philanthropist George Soros.

Novák had announced her resignation after it became known that she had pardoned a man who had been convicted of aiding and abetting child sexual abuse. This caused widespread outrage in Hungary and forced the government to withdraw its support.

Photo: Facebook