Hungary's parliament approved a constitutional amendment on Monday intended to remove President Tamás Sulyok from office immediately, fulfilling part of new Prime Minister Péter Magyar's pledge to dismantle what he says was the authoritarian governing structure built by former prime minister Viktor Orbán and clear state institutions of Orbán loyalists, whom Magyar calls his predecessor's “puppets.”

Magyar won a historic general-election victory in April, unseating Orbán after 16 consecutive years as prime minister.

Orbán was accused of turning Hungary into an undemocratic state during his time in office by subordinating the media and judiciary to his will and severely restricting the opposition.

A former member of Orbán's party, Magyar not only defeated him but secured a parliamentary majority of more than two-thirds.

That majority allows him and his allies to amend the constitution and reverse measures taken by Orbán that they describe as anti-democratic.

They have already approved an amendment barring anyone from serving as Hungary's prime minister for more than eight years in total.

The new amendment stipulates that Sulyok's term, after his appointment by the Orbán-era parliament in 2024, will end immediately because of what it calls a “serious loss of public confidence” in him.

Parliament would then appoint a new president to serve for no more than five years, or until a new constitution enters into force.

Magyar has said he intends this autumn to launch a “huge project,” involving the Hungarian people, to draft an entirely new constitution.

The amendment followed Sulyok's refusal in recent months to resign despite Magyar's calls for him to do so.

Magyar portrayed his sweeping election victory as public backing for a “change of regime” and a mandate to remove Orbán loyalists from the corridors of power.

Sulyok, a former judge on Hungary's Constitutional Court, maintains that he is not a political figure and has refused to leave office.

The presidency is largely ceremonial, but he can ask lawmakers to reconsider legislation or refer it to the Constitutional Court, powers that could obstruct or at least delay the sweeping reforms Magyar has promised.

After Monday's vote, Magyar said his government had begun the “transformation” it pledged to carry out in the legal system created under Orbán. “With this vote, we brought an era to an end,” he said.

“We asked for, and received, an absolutely clear mandate from the Hungarian people to do so.”

In an ironic turn, the amendment was then sent to Sulyok for signature.

He said he had sought advice from the Venice Commission, a legal panel of the Council of Europe, an international European body responsible for protecting human rights, on the amendment that would remove him.

Magyar said that if Sulyok refused to sign it, parliament would begin formal impeachment proceedings against him.

The amendment, which includes further reforms such as setting a retirement age of 70 for judges and limiting members of parliament to 12 years in office, passed by 139 votes to nine in the 199-seat legislature.

Members of Magyar's governing Tisza party applauded at the end of the vote, while Orbán's Fidesz party boycotted it.

Fidesz says the constitutional changes are unprecedented and accuses Magyar of acting in an authoritarian manner against his political opponents.

About 3,000 people attended a pro-Sulyok demonstration last week.

Orbán did not attend, but he defended the president on Monday and said his removal would be illegal.

Orbán, who is currently in the United States to watch the World Cup final matches, posted an image of Magyar against a dark background and declared the death of Hungarian democracy with the caption: “Democratic Hungary, 1990-2026.”

In another post, Orbán wrote: “Today they are settling accounts with the president of the republic, but tomorrow they can do it to anyone.

Tyranny does not tolerate criticism and does not tolerate oversight.

The government wants tools through which it can abolish any person's office and take away any person's business.

We will never recognize the violent methods of an autocratic regime as lawful or legitimate.

A new president placed in office illegally cannot be legitimate, and therefore his decisions will have no legal force either.

If the president is removed by force, Hungary has the right to resist.

And we will do so.”

Magyar's political and social revolution extends beyond constitutional change.

Last week, he appointed new management to the state television and radio networks, which had for years been accused of acting as mouthpieces for Orbán, and broadcasts were temporarily suspended.

A message on the main state television channel, M1, said transmissions were being suspended until the government completed the necessary restructuring and restored the media's independence and credibility.

“Public broadcasting must not lie,” it said.

“We apologize for having done so for many years nevertheless.

Public broadcasting is now undergoing structural change in order to become independent and credible in the future.

The news service is temporarily suspended.

Stay with us.”

Magyar won the election even though state media aligned with Orbán had barred him entirely from appearing in their studios during the campaign.

Only a day after his victory was he allowed to appear on the state Kossuth radio station and the public M1 television channel, where he engaged in heated live confrontations with interviewers.

He accused them of serving Orbán's agenda for years, operating as a propaganda tool and covering his party in a biased manner.

In his M1 interview, Magyar said he was not seeking personal revenge, although he and his family had been vilified “morning, noon and night.” He later described the interview as “the death throes of a factory of lies.”