Parliament approves the appointment of Tamas Sulyok, 67, president of the Constitutional Court, to replace Katalin Novak.
The Hungarian parliament has elected a political newcomer as president following the resignation of his predecessor, who caused outrage by pardoning a man convicted in a child abuse case.
The issue has become the biggest political crisis that nationalist Prime Minister Viktor Orban has faced since his return to power in 2010.
Orban ally Katalin Novak resigned as president this month after it was revealed she had pardoned the accomplice of a convicted child molester.
Last week, the ruling Fidesz party nominated Constitutional Court president Tamas Sulyok, 67, to replace Novak, Hungary's first female president.
On Monday, parliament, where Fidesz's ruling coalition with the Christian Democratic People's Party has a two-thirds majority, approved his appointment, after which he was sworn in.
He will assume the presidency on March 5.
Little known to the general public, Sulyok became a judge of the Constitutional Court in 2014 and, two years later, president of the court.
The opposition has criticized the appointment of Sulyok, an inexperienced politician. About 3,000 people attended a protest by four opposition parties on Sunday, calling for direct presidential elections. The position is largely ceremonial.
“Most boring presidency”
Novak's scandal broke this month when news site 444 revealed that she had pardoned the former deputy director of a children's home last year.
The man was sentenced in 2022 to three years and four months in prison for helping to cover up his boss's sexual abuse of children and adolescents there.
Tens of thousands of people have protested against a presidential pardon in Hungary, whose government has long campaigned on a pledge to protect children.
Orban compared Novak's resignation to a “nightmare” but stressed that it was the right decision.
Opening the parliament session on Monday, he described Sulyok as someone with “vast experience, respected knowledge and undisputed authority.”
“I think Hungary needs a president like that now,” he said.
Under Sulyok, the Constitutional Court issued several controversial rulings, including on teachers' right to strike.
To calm anger over the clemency scandal, Orban has promised to toughen existing laws to prevent convicted child abusers from receiving clemency.
It also wants to screen those who work with children to ensure they have passed the “appropriate suitability test”, which covers “lifestyle, sexual deviance and psychological fitness”.
