He served as the country's head of state from 1948 to 1950, the first Communist to hold the post.

When President Zoltán Tildy was forced to resign, Szakasits was named his successor on 3 August 1948 as part of the final stage of the Communists' complete takeover of the country.

After the adoption of a new Soviet-style Constitution in 1949, the presidency was replaced with a Presidential Council, and Szakasits became its chairman on 23 August 1949, serving until 26 April 1950.

In 1950, as acting chairman, he was arrested on trumped-up charges of war crimes, espionage, and conspiracy to overthrow the democratic order, and sentenced to life imprisonment.

Until his death he was a member of the Central Committee of the Hungarian Socialist Workers' Party (MSZMP).