András Baka

András Baka
Baka in 2025
President of Hungary
Incumbent
Assumed office
19 August 2026
Prime MinisterPéter Magyar
Preceded byTamás Sulyok[a]
President of the Supreme Court
In office
25 June 2009 – 31 December 2011
Preceded byZoltán Lomnici
Succeeded byPéter Darák
Judge of the European Court of Human Rights from Hungary
In office
23 April 1991 – 31 January 2008
Preceded byPosition established
Succeeded byAndrás Sajó
Member of the National Assembly
In office
2 May 1990 – 31 May 1991
Union leadership positions
President of the Confederation of Unions of Professionals
In office
20 September 1989 – May 1990
Preceded byUnion established
Succeeded byLászló Kis Papp
President of the Trade Union of Scientific and Innovation Workers
In office
25 June 1988 – May 1990
Preceded byUnion established
Succeeded byLászló Kuti
Personal details
BornAndrás Bálint Baka
(1952-12-11) 11 December 1952
Budapest, Hungary
PartyIndependent (supported by TISZA)
Other political
affiliations
Hungarian Democratic Forum (1990–1991)
Spouse
Katalin Kövesdi
​
(m. 1977)​
Children2
EducationELTE Faculty of Law
Occupation

András Bálint Baka[b] (born 11 December 1952) is a Hungarian jurist and politician who has served as president of Hungary since August 2026. He previously served as president of the Supreme Court of Hungary from 2009 to 2011 and was a member of the National Assembly from 1990 to 1991.

Early life

Baka was born on 11 December 1952 in Budapest.[1] He obtained a degree in law from the ELTE Faculty of Law in 1978.[2]

Baka's career began as a legal scholar at the Institute for Legal Studies of the Hungarian Academy of Sciences. He next served as director general of the College of Public Administration.[3]

From 1988 to 1990, Baka served as president of the Trade Union of Scientific and Innovation Workers.[4] From 1989 to 1990, he served as president of the Confederation of Unions of Professionals.[4]

From 1990 to 1991, Baka was an independent member of the National Assembly, elected from the Hungarian Democratic Forum's party list.[1]

Judge of the European Court of Human Rights (1991–2008)

For two terms, from 1991 to 2008, Baka was the Hungarian judge of the European Court of Human Rights.[3][5]

President of the Supreme Court (2009–2011)

From 2009 to 2011, Baka served as president (chief justice) of the Supreme Court.[6] He was appointed to the office by a vote of the National Assembly.[3] He has been described as an independent and "somewhat old-school" lawyer.[3]

Baka was removed from the office in 2011 by the government of Prime Minister Viktor Orbán, three years before his term was to otherwise expire.[7] This was managed by Orbán's political party, Fidesz, using its parliamentary supermajority to change the constitution to rename the "Supreme Court" to the "Curia". By renaming the court, Fidesz had effectively recreated the court as a new institution that parliament could then appoint a new chief justice for.[3] In the case Baka v. Hungary, decided in 2014, the European Court of Human Rights found that Baka's removal had been unlawful.[8] The court held that the government's removal of Baka had violated Baka's right to fair trial and to freedom of expression.[3] The ruling also found that Baka had been removed due to Baka's criticism of the Orbán government, and that his removal by Orbán's government was damaging to democratic freedoms in Hungary. Orbán rejected the findings of the ruling.[7]

Presidency (2026–present)

On 8 August 2026, the Tisza Party nominated Baka to be elected by the National Assembly to serve as the new President of Hungary.[8] Parliamentary members of the party selected him as their nominee from among other candidates on a shortlist in a vote held by secret ballot.[9] This came after Prime Minister Péter Magyar's initial preferred candidate for president, Judit Polgár, declined to be considered for the office. The National Assembly is set to vote on the appointment of a new president on 11 August.[8] With the Tisza Party holding a supermajority in the legislature, Baka's appointment succeeded without obstacle.[7] Baka remains a political independent, not being a member of the any party.[10] Budapest mayor Gergely Karácsony welcomed Baka's nomination saying that "the NER [i.e. Orbán's system] began with the firing of András Baka, and now it ends with his election as President of the Republic".[11]

The previous president, Tamás Sulyok, had been removed by an amendment to the constitution. Prime Minister Magyar had sought Sulyok's removal, asserting that Sulyok was a loyalist to ousted strongman former prime minister Orbán.[12] While objecting to it, Sulyok had signed the amendment himself after its passage by the National Assembly.[10] Three weeks prior to being tapped for the presidency himself, Baka had expressed his cautious optimism at the removal of Sulyok; telling the Canadian radio program As It Happens that he believes that successful transition away from the era of Orbán's consolidated rule requires "extraordinary measures."[13] The same amendment that removed Sulyok also stipulates that the new president will stay in office either for a maximum of five years or until a new constitution goes into effect. Hungary's presidency is a largely ceremonial office.[12]

On 11 August 2026, Baka was elected as the eighth president of Hungary by the Tisza Party's parliamentary supermajority.[14] His term began on 19 August 2026.[15]

Personal life

Baka's father, also named András, was a machine fitter, and his mother, Margit Maurer, was a high-school teacher specializing in Hungarian and German. He has one younger sister. In 1977, Baka married Katalin Kövesdi, who is also a teacher. They have two children.[16]

Notes

  1. ↑ Ágnes Forsthoffer served as acting president between the end of Sulyok's term and Baka's assumption of office.
  2. ↑ Hungarian pronunciation: [ˈɒndraːʃ ˈbɒkɒ]

References

  1. 1 2 "Baka András jogtudós életrajza". Infostart.hu (in Hungarian). 8 August 2026. Archived from the original on 8 August 2026. Retrieved 8 August 2026.
  2. ↑ "Baka Andrást jelöli köztársasági elnöknek a Tisza". telex (in Hungarian). 8 August 2026. Archived from the original on 9 August 2026. Retrieved 10 August 2026.
  3. 1 2 3 4 5 6 Gábor, Tanács (8 August 2026). "Tisza Party group nominates András Baka for president". euronews. Archived from the original on 8 August 2026. Retrieved 9 August 2026.
  4. 1 2 "Az államfő Baka Andrást jelölte főbírónak". Heti Világgazdaság (in Hungarian). 30 April 2008. Archived from the original on 8 August 2026. Retrieved 7 August 2026.
  5. ↑ "A nagykamara előtt folytatódik Baka András ügyének tárgyalása Strasbourgban". Híradó (in Hungarian). 16 December 2014.
  6. ↑ "Még idén leváltják Baka Andrást". Index (in Hungarian). 18 November 2011.
  7. 1 2 3 "Hungary's Ruling Party Nominates Former Supreme Court Head András Baka as President". NBC News. 8 August 2026. Archived from the original on 8 August 2026. Retrieved 8 August 2026.
  8. 1 2 3 Halász, Péter (8 August 2026). "Magyar's Party Backs Former Supreme Court Head for Hungarian President". Politico. Retrieved 8 August 2026.
  9. ↑ "Hungary's ruling party selects Orban-critic judge as pick for president". Le Monde. 8 August 2026. Retrieved 9 August 2026.
  10. 1 2 "Hungary's ruling party proposes appointing former Supreme Court head as president". 1news.az. 8 August 2026. Retrieved 9 August 2026.
  11. ↑ "Karácsony: A NER Baka András kirúgásával kezdődött, most a köztársasági elnökké választásával ér véget". 444 (in Hungarian). Retrieved 11 August 2026.
  12. 1 2 "Hungary's Ruling Party Nominates Former Supreme Court Head Baka as President". Reuters. 8 August 2026. Retrieved 8 August 2026.
  13. ↑ "Hungarian judge cautiously optimistic after Parliament passes constitutional amendment to oust Orbán-era president". CBC. 15 July 2026. Retrieved 9 August 2026.
  14. ↑ Székely, Ferenc (11 August 2026). "A Magyar Köztársaság 9. elnöke Baka András volt bíró". Euronews (in Hungarian). Retrieved 11 August 2026.
  15. ↑ "Mától Baka András a köztársasági elnök". 24.hu (in Hungarian). 19 August 2026. Retrieved 19 August 2026.
  16. ↑ "Baka András". Személyi névtér – Nemzeti Névtér (in Hungarian). Retrieved 22 August 2026.
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