György Gyimesi Explained

Birth Name:Juraj Gyimesi
Birth Date:24 August 1980
Birth Place:Kráľovský Chlmec, Czechoslovakia
Office:Member of the National Council
Termstart:21 March 2020
Termend:15 May 2023
Party:Hungarian Alliance (from 2023)
Ordinary People and Independent Personalities (2020–2023)
Alma Mater:Pavel Jozef Šafárik University

György Gyimesi (born 24 August 1980) is a Slovak politician who has been MP of the National Council of Slovakia since 2020.

Early life

György Gyimesi was born on 24 August 1980 in Kráľovský Chlmec.[1] He was born as Juraj Gyimesi but legally changed his given name to György in 2020.[2] His father Július Gyimesi was a physician and served as an MP of the Czechoslovak Federal Assembly from 1990 to 1991.[3] Gyimesi studied public policy at the Pavel Jozef Šafárik University.[4]

Political career

Gyimesi failed to win a seat in the 2020 Slovak parliamentary election on the list of the Ordinary People and Independent Personalities (OĽaNO). Nonetheless, he became an MP as a replacement for Jaroslav Naď.[5]

In March 2021 Gyimesi conducted negotiations with the Hungarian foreign minister Péter Szijjártó with the aim to amend the Slovak citizenship law, which stipulates that citizens of Slovakia who acquire another citizenship without having a genuine tie to their new country automatically lose their Slovak citizenship. The law was implemented as a countermeasure to the Hungarian law, which makes all "ethnic Hungarians" living abroad eligible for the Hungarian citizenship. The foreign minister of Slovakia Ivan Korčok sharply criticized both Gyimesi and the Hungarian government for their conduct, stressing that the MP had no mandate to conduct such negotiations with a representative of a foreign country. Gyimesi, in turn, accused Korčok of Hungarophobia.[6]

In April 2023, Gyimesi announced departure from OĽaNO over his disagreement with pro-Ukrainian stance of the prime minister Eduard Heger in the Russian invasion of Ukraine.[7] In May 2023, Gyimesi lost his National Council mandate when Naď resigned as the defense minister and returned to the parliament.[8] In the 2023 Slovak parliamentary election, Gyimesi ran on the list of the Hungarian Alliance party, which failed to pass the representation threshold.[9] In late 2023, he became a vice-chair of the Hungarian Alliance. As the vice-chair he argued for an electoral coalition with one of the "sovereigntist" political parties, claiming that the "ethnic politics is dead" in Slovakia.[10]

Notes and References

  1. Web site: Vystúpenie v rozprave. National Council of Slovakia. 12 July 2024. sk.
  2. News: Poslanec Gyimesi: Mám len jedno občianstvo, a to slovenské. Korzár. 27 June 2024. sk.
  3. Web site: V čele ŠtB. Ústav pamäti národa. 12 July 2024. sk.
  4. Web site: Teória a prax verejnej správy. unibook.upjs.sk. 12 July 2024. sk.
  5. Web site: Teória a prax verejnej správy. unibook.upjs.sk. 12 July 2024. sk.
  6. Web site: Zoltán. Szalay. Dvojaké občianstvo opäť vyostruje naše vzťahy s Budapešťou, Korčok si predvolal maďarského veľvyslanca. Denník N. 4 March 2021. 27 June 2024. sk.
  7. Web site: Igora Matoviča opúšťa ďalší poslanec. Podľa ministra Naďa je Gyimesi geopolitický pomätenec. Aktuality.sk. 19 April 2023. 27 June 2024. sk.
  8. Web site: Ministri sa čoskoro vrátia do NR SR, zbohom jej dá nielen Gyimesi. Hegerovci budú mať nové posily. Plus Noviny. TV JOJ. 7 May 2023. 27 June 2024. sk.
  9. Web site: Lucia. Osvaldová. Kto sú hlavní porazení vo voľbách: Republika poriadok v štáte neurobí, do parlamentu sa nedostal ani Naď či Gyimesi . Denník N. 1 October 2023. 27 June 2024. sk.
  10. Web site: Jozef. Majchrák. Gyimesiho stávka na Fica / Ako vyzerá sólojazda jedného ambiciózneho politika. Postoj. 27 June 2024. sk.