Constitution of Hungary

Constitution of Hungary
Overview
Jurisdiction	Hungary
Ratified	18 April 2011
Date effective	1 January 2012
System	Unitary parliamentary republic
Government structure
Branches	3
Head of state	President
Chambers	Unicameral (National Assembly)
Executive	Government
Judiciary	Curia (Supreme Court) Constitutional Court
Federalism	Unitary
Electoral college	No
History
Amendments	13
Last amended	2024
Citation	"Magyarország Alaptörvénye". (in Hungarian) "The Fundamental Law of Hungary". (in English)
Author(s)	Parliamentary Committee
Signatories	Pál Schmitt
Supersedes	Hungarian Constitution of 1949
Full text
Fundamental Law of Hungary at Wikisource
Constitution of Hungary at Hungarian Wikisource

Politics of Hungary
Constitution 1949 Constitution Constitutional Court
Executive President (list) Tamás Sulyok Government Current cabinet Prime Minister (list) Viktor Orbán
Parliament National Assembly Speaker: László Kövér Political parties Fidesz Christian Democratic People's Party (KDNP) Jobbik Politics Can Be Different (LMP) Dialogue for Hungary (PM) Hungarian Socialist Party (MSZP) Democratic Coalition (DK) Momentum Movement (M) Everybody's Hungary Movement (MMM) Our Homeland Movement (MH)
Recent elections Parliamentary: 2014 2018 2022 Presidential: 2017 2022 2024 Local: 2014 2019 2024 European: 2014 2019 2024
Budapest Mayor of Budapest Gergely Karácsony Mayoral elections 1994 1998 2002 2006 2010 2014 2019
Administrative divisions Districts Counties Regions Subregions
Foreign relations Austria–Hungary relations China–Hungary relations France–Hungary relations Germany–Hungary relations Hungary–Italy relations Hungary–Russia relations Hungary–United Kingdom relations Hungary–United States relations Timeline of Hungary–European Union relations Politics of the European Union
Hungary portal Other countries
v t e

The Fundamental Law of Hungary (Hungarian: Magyarország alaptörvénye), the country's constitution, was adopted by parliament on 18 April 2011, promulgated by the president a week later and entered into force on 1 January 2012. It is Hungary's first constitution adopted within a democratic framework and following free elections.

The document succeeded the 1949 Constitution, originally adopted at the creation of the Hungarian People's Republic on 20 August 1949 and heavily amended on 23 October 1989. The 1949 Constitution was Hungary's first permanent written constitution and, until it was replaced, Hungary was the only former Eastern Bloc nation without an entirely new constitution after the end of communism.

Both domestically and abroad, the 2011 constitution has been the subject of controversy. Among the claims critics make are that it was adopted without sufficient input from the opposition and society at large, that it reflects the ideology of the ruling Fidesz party, and enshrines it in office, that it is rooted in a conservative Christian worldview despite Hungary not being a particularly devout country, and that it curtails and politicizes previously independent institutions. The government that enacted the charter has dismissed such assertions, saying it was enshrined lawfully and reflects the popular will.