Hungarian PM backs chess legend for president
Hungarian Prime Minister Péter Magyar has said he will ask renowned chess grandmaster Judit Polgár whether she is prepared to serve as the country’s president until a new Constitution is adopted, Qazinform News Agency reports.
In a statement posted on Facebook, Magyar said Hungary needed unity, "The presidency of the republic is not an occupation or simply a job, but the highest form of public service. The president’s duty is to serve and represent every Hungarian,” he wrote.
According to the prime minister, prominent figures in Hungarian public life have proposed Judit Polgár as a candidate for the presidency. Magyar said he would meet with her on July 21 to discuss whether she was willing to take on the role.
He described Polgár as a figure whose reputation was built on talent, perseverance, integrity and achievement rather than political connections.
“Personally, I would consider it a tremendous honor if she accepted the nomination,” Magyar added.
Who is Judit Polgár?
Born in Budapest in 1976, Judit Polgár is a Hungarian chess grandmaster widely regarded as the strongest female chess player in history.
She became a grandmaster in 1991 at the age of 15, breaking the record previously held by American chess legend Bobby Fischer. Polgár later became the first and so far only woman to surpass an Elo rating of 2700.
She reached a career-high rating of 2735 and rose to eighth place in the overall world rankings, competing against the world’s leading male players rather than limiting herself to women’s tournaments. She has defeated several world champions during her career, including Garry Kasparov, Anatoly Karpov and Viswanathan Anand.
Polgár held the position of the world’s highest-ranked female chess player for a record 26 consecutive years.
She announced her retirement from competitive chess in 2014 and has since focused on education and promoting the game through the Judit Polgar Foundation and the annual Global Chess Festival.
In 2015, Polgár received the Hungarian Order of Saint Stephen, Hungary’s highest state decoration. In 2021, she was inducted into the World Chess Hall of Fame.
Her career was also featured in the documentary The Queen of Chess, released in 2026.
Earlier, Qazinform News Agency reported that Hungarian President Tamás Sulyok had signed a constitutional amendment ending his term after it was approved by parliament as part of a broader political overhaul.