Hungary's new PM Peter Magyar tells 'unworthy' president to resign

Hungary's incoming prime minister has urged the country's "unworthy" president to resign and urged a swift handover of power from Putin-ally Viktor Orban.

Peter Magyar's landslide election win on Sunday, off the back of a record turnout, ended Mr Orban's 16-year spell in power.

He now wants to take over as soon as possible and said President Tamas Sulyok had told him the handover was possible in the first week of May.

"[The president] thinks, and I think everyone thinks, that it's in the interests of the Hungarian nation that after such an overwhelming mandate from the voters, a change in government and a change of regime should happen as quickly as possible," Mr Magyar said.

Hungary's leader-in-waiting is keen to flush out any allies of the previous government and wants Mr Sulyok, who's been in his job since 2024, to stand down once the handover is complete.

In a post on X, which showed him standing next to Mr Sulyok, he said he was "unworthy of representing the unity of the Hungarian nation" and "not fit to serve as a moral authority or a role model".

Mr Magyar said if he refused to go, his government would make constitutional changes to remove Mr Sulyok "along with all the other puppets that the Orban system has installed".

Hungary's president is elected indirectly by parliament and normally serves for five years.

The role is largely ceremonial, though they are officially the head of state and commander of the armed forces, and can also propose laws and referendums.

The constitution says the president should "embody the nation's unity" - but as Mr Sulyok was elected under Orban's majority his position appears untenable.

Mr Magyar, 45, won a two-thirds majority in the election, pledging to make Hungary a "European country again" after years of Mr Orban cosying up to Russia and blocking help for Ukraine.

His pledges include halting economic stagnation, reforming the health system, and stamping out corruption.

Mr Magyar told Hungary's public broadcaster on Wednesday that its news service - which has long been an Orban mouthpiece - would be suspended until "conditions are established that are independent, objective, and impartial".

"One of the key elements of our programme is that this factory of lies will come to an end once the Tisza government is formed," he said.

Mr Magyar once worked as a foreign affairs official under Mr Orban but resigned from his Fidesz party in 2024 and joined the pro-European Tisza.

As he prepares major changes to government institutions, the centre-right politician has also urged the outgoing administration not to take any actions to impede his work.

(c) Sky News 2026: Hungary's new PM Peter Magyar tells 'unworthy' president to resign