The Dimensions of the Responsibility of the President of the Republic in the Hungarian Constitutional System

Abstract

A fundamental feature of parliamentary forms of government is that the head of state has no political responsibility, only legal responsibility. The form of government of Hungary is a republic which works in a parliamentary governmental system. Consequently, in order to make certain decisions the President of the Republic needs the countersignature of a member of the government, who thereby assumes political responsibility for the decision. On the other hand, the Head of State also has powers which he can exercise on his own authority, without the need for a countersignature. On the basis of the above, I believe that it can be argued that the President of the Republic also has political responsibility, and not just solely on the basis of the powers that he can exercise without countersignature. In my study, I seek to support this hypothesis.