Hungary's parliament voted to change the constitution. The new rule says that anyone who has been prime minister for eight years or more cannot become prime minister again. Viktor Orbán has been Hungary's leader since 2010, so this rule would stop him from running again.

Here's why this matters: Orbán has been in power for fifteen years. The new law counts how many years someone has served as prime minister, not how many times they were elected. Because Orbán has already served well beyond eight years, he would no longer be allowed to run.

For a long time, it seemed impossible for the opposition to pass any major law. Orbán's Fidesz party won so many seats in elections that it could pass almost anything alone, without needing opposition votes. That changed in April 2025. Opposition parties won more seats than before, and a new leader named Peter Magyar united them. Suddenly, the opposition had enough votes to pass laws on their own. This constitutional amendment was their first major victory.

Why people are watching this carefully: Hungary has a court that checks whether laws follow the constitution. That court's judges were chosen by Fidesz over many years. The European Union has said these judges may favor the government rather than decide cases fairly. Now Fidesz might challenge this amendment in that same court. If the court strikes down the amendment, people might not trust the decision.

Other democracies have rules about how long leaders can serve. France, for example, says a president can only serve two terms. But Hungary's approach is unusual. Instead of saying "you can only be elected twice," it says "you cannot serve more than eight years total." And this rule came from opposition pressure, not from a government trying to protect itself. That is different from what Orbán's party did in previous years when they rewrote many constitutional rules to strengthen their own power.

What happens next is uncertain. Fidesz might immediately ask the Constitutional Court to cancel the amendment. If the court does that, the amendment disappears. If the court says the amendment is legal, it stands. Even if the amendment stays in place, Fidesz could try to change it back if they win enough seats in future elections.

This is a moment worth watching. It will show whether Hungary's courts and democracy can fix problems when voters decide to change things.