Parliament rejected President László Sólyom’s third pair of candidates for ombudsmen for the environment and data privacy on Monday afternoon. In a secret ballot, MPs voted 159-138 against future generations nominee Ágnes Mészáros Bogdányi and by 181-113 against data privacy candidate Attila Gábor Tóth.
Sólyom, who has repeatedly refused to consult the political parties before selecting candidates, sharply criticized the parties’ conduct, describing the current situation as very serious. “If Parliament does not approve the candidates on three consecutive occasions without giving any reasons, it endangers the operation of the state,” he declared. Sólyom recalled that the parliamentary committees had not raised any substantial objections to his candidates after their hearings. “The caucuses are hiding for the umpteenth time behind a secret ballot,” he said.
He told Népszabadság that he does not intend to consult the parties in the future. He has 30 days to decide what to do next.
The result was a foregone conclusion, Magyar Hírlap writes, as Fidesz and the Christian Democrats announced after their morning caucus meeting that MPs could vote according to their conscience. The Socialists had decided to vote for both, but the high number of rejections shows that many MPs broke ranks. The Free Democrats and the Democratic Forum supported Tóth but rejected Bogdányi, reportedly due to her low professional prestige.
Parliament rejected nominees Boldizsár Nagy and Attila Péterfalvi in December and Sándor Fülöp and Ferenc Zombor on February 25. The election of ombudsmen requires a two-thirds majority of MPs.
