Dacian Ciolos Resigns, Catalin Drula Takes Over USR Leadership

Dacian Ciolos, the president of USR, one of the Opposition parties in Romania, resigns from office on Monday, February 7. Before that, he conditioned his remaining with reforms to be conducted within the party. As the leading party council failed to support his reforms and plan for the following period, Dacian Ciolos resigned.

His resignation ends a period of internal fighting within the party. Lately, the former USR president, Dan Barna, has attacked Ciolos openly and repeatedly on different subjects. The disagreement between the two leaders started along with the party’s fall in the opinion polls. From governing in September 2021, USR became one of the small Opposition parties with only 12% voting intention.

Dacian Ciolos is one of the most prominent political figures in Romania. He was Minister of Agriculture, European Commissioner for Agriculture, Romanian Prime Minister and a member of the European Parliament. Before taking over the USR presidency, his last position was the president of the Renew Europe group in the EP, a position supported by the French president, Emmanuel Macron.

USR is an artificial alliance of two main parties: USR and PLUS. They formed a political association during the last campaigns, and both parties agreed to change the partnership’s name to USR. Their ‘marriage’ seemed to last until the next Parliamentary elections, but Ciolos’s decision ended the agreement abruptly.

Now, Dacian Ciolos is to leave along with all the other PLUS members. The party, now on the fourth in the voters’ preferences, is to split in two. The USR leadership is to be assured by Catalin Drula, the former Minister of Transport and one of the party’s vice-presidents.