Hungary's parliament elected András Baka, 73, a former Supreme Court chief and 17-year judge at the European Court of Human Rights, as president by a vote of 140 to 6, after Fidesz's 51 MPs walked out in protest over the ousting of their preferred candidate, Tamás Sulyok. Baka was removed from his own Supreme Court post by Orbán's government in 2011 for resisting efforts to undermine judicial independence.
Baka's role will include overseeing the drafting of a new constitution to replace Orbán's 2011 version, as Prime Minister Péter Magyar's government works to dismantle the previous administration's political and economic structures. Since taking office in May, Magyar's government has passed 27 laws and two constitutional amendments, cancelled Orbán-era states of emergency, abolished the Sovereignty Protection Office, and restored the Constitutional Court's oversight powers.
Public broadcasting has been off air since July 9 for a revamp, and new limits cap the prime minister to two terms and MPs to three. Baka has already signaled independence from the government that installed him, telling the BBC he personally opposes the MP term limits as an intrusion on voters' rights, and his presidency is expected to last only until the new constitution takes effect, or five years at most.
The full dispatch is available from the source below.