Liberals’ Announcement

In a video posted on social media, Ciuca declared that the coalition has reached its political conclusion. He cited a recent Constitutional Court ruling that disqualified a far-right candidate as a primary concern, describing it as a significant threat to democracy in Romania. Despite the coalition’s dissolution, Ciuca affirmed that PNL would remain in government to prevent what he termed “abuses” by the PSD, arguing that stepping back would be irresponsible.

His remarks reflect deep frustrations with the PSD’s handling of critical issues and highlight the growing divisions between the two parties as they approach crucial elections scheduled for November and December.

Yet, the last straw that broke the Coalition’s back was when Ciuca highlighted a recent ruling by the Constitutional Court that disqualified far-right candidate Diana Șoșoacă from the presidential race, which he described as a politically motivated act that raises questions about the integrity of Romania’s democratic processes. Ciuca asserted that this ruling, made by a majority of judges appointed by PSD, effectively eliminated a political adversary and demonstrated what he termed an “abuse of power” inherent in the PSD’s governance style. He emphasized that such actions could lead to further political repression, warning that if left unchecked, PSD could undermine democratic institutions and media freedoms.

Socialists’ Response

In response to Ciuca’s announcement, PSD leader Marcel Ciolacu issued an official statement urging PNL to reconsider its decision. He emphasized the need for responsibility and dialogue, suggesting that PNL should return to the negotiation table to address their differences constructively. Ciolacu criticized Ciuca’s approach, warning that abandoning the coalition could lead to instability in governance at a critical time for the country. He underscored the importance of collaboration in tackling national challenges and maintaining a united front against extremist parties.

Implications for Future Governance

The dissolution of this coalition raises questions about legislative stability in Romania as both parties navigate a precarious political landscape ahead of upcoming elections. With both Ciuca and Ciolacu running for president in this electoral cycle, the dynamics between PNL and PSD will be closely watched as they seek to appeal to voters while managing their internal conflicts.

As Romania moves forward into this uncertain political climate, the calls for dialogue and responsibility from both sides highlight the complexities of governance in a divided political landscape. The coming weeks will be crucial as both parties attempt to define their paths amidst growing electoral pressures.

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Moreover, political preparations have been made—no current law allows the President to run for a position as a Member of the Parliament, so this had to be fixed. Hence, on Wednesday, September 18, the Liberals, the political party supporting the President, registered the draft of the bill to allow any President during the last three months of the mandate to run as an independent on the lists of any political party.

Sources say the Socialists won’t oppose the bill, and Klaus Johannis will promulgate the law after Parliament votes.

The scenario goes even further—the same sources say the President will be the first on the Liberal Party’s list for the Senate in Bucharest, undoubtedly making him a Senator. Sources say Johannis also aims for the Head of the Senate position, the second position in the State.

In addition, as the Liberals have very low chances of winning the presidential elections, Nicolae Ciuca, the current Head of the Liberal Party and party’s candidate for the presidency, will resign, and Klaus Johannis will be voted party leader.

The above confirms the political stakeholders’ expectations that a Socialist candidate (such as Marcel Ciolacu, the Socialist leader, or Mircea Geoana, the former Secretary General at NATO) will be elected as Romania’s President. Thus, by sharing the top state positions, the President and the Head of the Senate, respectively, Socialists and Liberals will be able to run the future governing coalition as they currently do.

Klaus Johannis was forced to aim for a position within the Romanian State, such as the Head of the Senate, after his pursuit of a top NATO or European position failed.

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Romania’s Prime Minister Marcel Ciolacu’s decision to summon parties to consultation influences the presidential election dates in Romania. However, the decision was meant to keep the governing coalition alive while there were rumours that the presidential election could end it.

Today, we practically leave the previously established electoral calendar, the last day on which we could pass the Government Ordinance to establish the date of the elections.
That’s why I will invite the leaders of all political parties to establish the election calendar together from Monday with the two deputy prime ministers. This is the right approach and not changing a minister forced by his party not to initiate a previously agreed piece of legislation. I will not respond to challenges to trigger a governmental crisis and instability in Romania.

Romania’s Prime Minsiter Marcel Ciolacu

There are visible tensions between the Socialists and the Liberals who form the ruling coalition. The bone of contention was the presidential election date. Even though it was already agreed to be held on September 15 – round 1 and 29 – second round if necessary, the Liberals have changed their mind and wanted to postpone it until late autumn, while Socialists wanted the initial agreement to be respected.

The problem for the Liberals is that their presidential candidate, Nicolae Ciuca, has no time to improve his image drastically. Giant billboards have already been placed in the country, pushing Ciuca’s image as a man of honour and reminding electors of his military past. Yet, political consultants see it as too little and too late to offer him a good chance of winning the presidential elections.

The initial agreement of the Liberals was based on the potential successful candidature of Klaus Johannis for a high position at NATO or the European Council. In this scenario, Johannis would’ve resigned from the office earlier, leaving Nicolae Ciuca, now Head of the Senate and the second man in the state, as interim president until the elections. This would’ve boosted Ciuca’s image as a potential president, helping him even in early elections.

Both scenarios failed to fulfil, thus Joahnnis has to remain in the office until late December. This cuts Ciuca’s chances of becoming interim president, which is why Liberals need more time to improve his image.

After political consultations with the parties, Romania’s PM Marcel Ciolacu will announce the presidential elections’ agenda for this year.

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Open discussions between the two parties forming the governing alliance regarding one candidate have been known for the last 12 months. Yet, no decision was made, and both parties wanted to offer their candidate support from the other party in the alliance.

On Tuesday, June 11, the two party leaders, Nicolae Ciuca and Marcel Ciolacu, met to discuss the strategy for the next elections. After the meeting, Mr Ciuca offered a short statement to the journalists:

PNL will have its own candidate (for the presidential elections). We will decide in the party’s leadership forums.

Nicolae Ciuca, Liberal Party Leader, on candidacy for presidential elections

He also mentioned the Liberals and the Socialists could not have the same candidate for the presidential elections.

Sources mentioned that Nicolae Ciuca would be the Liberal Party’s proposal for the presidential elections this autumn, and the announcement will be made public soon.

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The EPP includes 84 parties and partners from 44 countries, the presidents of the European Commission (Ursula von der Leyen) and the European Parliament (Roberta Metsola), heads of state or government from 12 EU member countries, ten members of the European Commission and the most significant political group (178 members) in the European Parliament.

Among the presidents and prime ministers, we mention:

• The President of Romania, Klaus Iohannis
• The Prime Minister of Finland, Petteri Orpo
• The Prime Minister of Luxembourg, Luc Frieden
• The President of Cyprus, Nikos CHRISTODOULIDES
• Chancellor of Austria, Karl Nehammer
• The Prime Minister of Ireland, Leo Varadkar
• The Prime Minister of Croatia, Andrej Plenkovic
• The Prime Minister of Poland, Donald Tusk
• The Prime Minister of Greece, Kyriakos Mitsotakis
• The Prime Minister of Lithuania, Ingrida Simonyte

Approximately 2000 participants from 44 countries have been invited to take part.

The forthcoming 2024 EPP Congress in Bucharest, jointly hosted by the Romanian party PNL, will center on the election of our lead candidate and the unveiling of our electoral manifesto for the European Parliament elections scheduled for June 6-9, 2024. The Congress represents a moment of unity, reflection, and inspiration, allowing us to celebrate achievements and address challenges such as Russia’s war in Ukraine, the increasing cost of living, and the threats posed by populism and extremism. As the EPP stays true to its values, we emphasize empowering the people of Europe, preserving our deep-rooted values, and protecting the Union against internal and external threats.

EPP official communication

EPP CONGRESS IN BUCHAREST PROGRAMME

WEDNESDAY, 6 MARCH 2024

08:00-09:30
EPP Ethics Committee

08:30-12:30
EPP Group Study Days 1st session (including a session with EPP Group CoR)

10:00-12:00
Resolution Committee

14:00
Congress: 1st Plenary Session
Welcome speeches

14:30
Debate focusing on the voice of villages, cities and regions

15:15
Debates and exchanges with Presidents of the Parliamentary Assemblies Council of Europe, NATO, OSCE, Chairpersons of Groups, EPP Associations, WMCES President
• Discussion on defence and security
• Discussion on intergenerational solidarity
• Discussion on the economy and jobs

16:15
Interventions by non-EU Heads of State and Government, non-EU Opposition and Party Leaders

17:15
Presentation and vote on ordinary and emergency Resolutions and Statutory changes

18:15
EPP Electoral Manifesto: Presentation and Vote

19:15
Closing Remarks

EPP reception and family dinner co-hosted by PNL

THURSDAY, 7 MARCH 2024

8:00-09:00
Women Empowering Perspectives for Peace

8:00-09:00
EPP-CoR Group Local Dialogue on Enlargement

8:00-09:00
EPP Group Study Days 2nd session

9:00
Congress: 2nd Plenary Session
Interventions by EU Opposition and Party Leaders

9:45
Address by EPP President

10:00
Speech(es) by nominee(s) for EPP Lead Candidate

10:15–11:45
Election of the EPP Lead Candidate for President of the European Commission (Secret Ballot)

10:15- 11:45
Interventions by Deputy Prime Ministers and EU Heads of State and Government

11:45-12:10
Address by EU institutions Presidents and President of Romania

12:15-12:30
Announcement of the result of the election of the EPP Lead Candidate
Acceptance Speech of the EPP Lead Candidate
Closing of the Congress

For more details on the Congress, please visit the dedicated website https://www.epp2024.eu/.

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According to the answers, if elections were to be organized this Sunday, the results would look like this:

• PSD – Social Democratic Party (in power) – 28%
• AUR – The Alliance for the Union of Romanians – 22%
• PNL – The National Liberal Party (in power) – 18%
• USR – The Save Romania Union – 13%
• UDMR – The Democratic Union of the Hungarian in Romania (now in Opposition) – 6%

This is quite an exciting trend – while the Socialists and the Liberals, now forming the Governing Coalition, fall in voting intention, the Nationalists drastically increase. This trend follows the high inflation rate, the slowing down of the economy, and the people’s lack of trust in the Government.

The recent three-week strike of the teachers showed that society has far more profound problems, and disappointment with Government’s actions is acute. This is why the Governing parties – PSD and PNL, are dropping while AUR, the only Opposition party visible through actions rather than statements, grows.

Rumours of early elections are not rumours any longer, and political pundits expect such a move to be adopted by both PSD and PNL, for fear the Nationalists would grow even more.

Meanwhile, the recent PM rotation is seen as good by 12%, while 35% say it is terrible. 48% of respondents have a neutral attitude towards this topic, while 49% say things will stay the same. On the other hand, 34% say things will get worse.

The post Opinion Poll: Nationalists on Second in Voting Intention in Romania appeared first on Valahia.News.

The agreement was that Nicolae Ciuca, the current Prime Minister, is to rule the Government until May 25th, when he would resign and let his Socialist colleague, the head of the Social Democratic Party, Marcel Ciolacu, be assigned as Prime Minister until the end of the current political mandate of the Parliament. This agreement is broken, as Ciuca decided not to resign.

The presidents of the three ruling parties appeared on national tv stations assuming this postponement in rotation. Marcel Ciolacu, who was expected to be Prime Minister this month, has to wait until the teachers’ strike is over. It could be weeks or months.

Nicolae Ciuca has his second questionable political moment. His first was precisely when he entered politics. As a former Chief of Army Staff, Ciuca promised not to enter politics when he retired. He failed to keep his promise and joined the National Liberal Party. Soon after, he became president of the Liberals and Prime Minister. Such a brilliant political career, right? Wrong, as political pundits say, Cuca is Romania’s President’s political puppet.

His second questionable moment was when he failed to keep his promise and resigned from office. Both moments show how much trust you can have in hearing a promise from him.

On the other hand, Marcel Ciolacu seems like a Socialist who dances when Liberals play a piece of specific music. Far from showing the same solid political posture of the former Socialist leaders, Ciolacu gave up any form of criticism of decisions taken by Liberals and preferred to remain silent but in power.

No solid opposition in Romania makes all these possible. The current Governing Coalition will keep power until 2024; no other alliances can oppose them until the next elections. In this context, Romania seems like a stable democracy from the outside, but people started noticing it’s far from that.

The post Romanian Governing Coalition Decides to Postpone ‘PM Rotation’ appeared first on Valahia.News.

Citu’s quick jump to power turns into an abrupt fall. On the other hand, his short career as the party’s leader wasn’t smooth.

He was elected president on September 25th, 2021, defeating the former leader, Ludovic Orban, whom he had also replaced as Prime Minister. Less than two weeks later, on October 5th, Citu lost his position as Prime Minister following the no-confidence motion in Parliament. Now it’s his turn to lose power to the current PM, Nicolae Ciuca.

Florin Citu was a controversial politician. He admitted he did time in the US for unpaired driving. He also swore he wouldn’t ally with the Socialists as long as he was in power, but he did that. The current governing coalition is the result of his agreement with the Socialists.

His fate seems to become a habit in the Liberal Party. Ludovic Orban, the former leader, was isolated by the Liberals before his ousting from power. Now, it’s his turn to be separated: despite summoning a formal meeting with the party leaders, he signed his resignation alone in the party’s headquarters.

The current PM, Nicolae Ciuca, is the best-positioned candidate to take the party’s leadership. An ex-general, he is preferred to any other ‘civilian’ during the regional context. On the other hand, his lack of experience in politics and his visible obedience to the head of state, Klaus Johannis, and the NATO structures make him the perfect man for the job in Romania.

Currently, the Liberal Party is falling in the recent opinion polls, reaching 15%, while the other party forming the ruling coalition, the Social-Democratic Party, has 35%.

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The Romanians remember his mandate, and some even recollect those years when Romania started to grow economically by an unprecedented annual rate of +8%.

His political expertise is recognized, so his opinion still counts in politics and society. His last post on Facebook, 15 years after Romania joined the EU, was the subject of a vivid debate.

After acknowledging the benefits for Romania of joining the European Union, among which he mentions the freedom of traveling and the improvement of the living conditions, Tariceanu expresses his regrets.

Romania’s current leaders don’t understand that the European Union is a community of equal states. Each one contributes to the common good but doesn’t forget to defend and promote its interests. Through their deplorable behavior, they make Romania treated as a second-rate country. I strongly urge them to represent and protect Romania’s interests.

Former Romanian PM Calin Popescu Tariceanu on Facebook

Is Romania a second-rate country?

Opinion polls show that Romanians are not happy with the way things go in the country. Also, Romanians witnessed their country being humiliated by the European institutions, including the European Commission. Romania is seen mainly as a corrupt state, with corrupted politicians and lazy people, but the current leaders do little to defend the country. Not all politicians are corrupt, not all people are lazy, and exceptions shouldn’t define the European people, may it be the Romanians.

Most of the time, the European institutions’ orders are obeyed to the letter by the Romanian Government. On top of that, whoever dares to criticize the European Union is seen as pro-Russian. It’s enough for many to lower their voice. It’s enough for many to be discouraged from expressing their freedom of speech.

This has become even stronger during the last two years. Those who opposed compulsory vaccination, as the EU ordered, were labeled as anti-vaxxers and, of course, pro-Russian. Mass-media entities fighting the idea that people would lose their freedoms were censored, fined with tens of thousands of Euros, and ridiculed with the help of the pro-European press.

Behind the carefully written political speeches of the country’s leaders, there is a fracture in Romanian society. Romanians label each other, and everyone’s guilty in the country: you are guilty if you utter anti-vaccination opinions. You are also culpable if you speak against the European Union. The people lived this situation 32 years ago when the communist regime censored any views against the then leaders. Those times are back once again.

Many Romanians think the same – the current leaders are too obedient, and all they do is execute the orders from Bruxelles. Nationalism is rising in Romania, with the nationalist party AUR reaching an unbelievable 17% in the last opinion polls. This is why we believe the country is heading in a very different direction from what it was running on January 1st, 2007, 15 years ago.

Romanians want their leaders to defend the country’s interests in Brussels, and the current situation is far off this goal. Romania seems like a country begging for its rights instead of diplomatically acting like an equal state in the Union. The other solution is for the European Union to change the very definition of the word ‘ Union’. This will solve everything.

The post Romania’s Ex-PM: Romania’s Leaders Do NOT Understand EU is a Union of Equal States appeared first on Valahia.News.

The death of its leader, Corneliu Vadim Tudor, in 2015 made it even more complicated for the party to enter the Romanian Parliament again. This seemed to be the end of the nationalist movement in Romania.

The rest of the parties were so content about the failure of the nationalist to pass the required 5% to enter Parliament that they were constantly bragging about that, telling the Europeans that Romania doesn’t have any nationalist political formation in Parliament. The Romanian Socialists or the Liberals were quite convinced that this could make the Europeans start showing Romania a bit of respect.

However, it was not the case, as the Europeans had nationalist movements at home. Having or not having a nationalist movement in your backyard doesn’t mean anything. One country is not more or less civilized if it has a nationalist movement. It’s just the opinion of the voters, and every vote counts and has to be respected.

Now the situation is quite different. Another nationalist movement, more visible, action prone, and created on the same principles, is rising: AUR – the Alliance for the Unification of All Romanians. While PRM took its name from the Romanian territories’ unification, AUR means almost the same.

AUR succeeded in getting 9% of the votes during the last elections. It was enough to ensure they entered the Parliament. There was a shock for the Socialists and the Liberals at that moment. Now the surprise is even more significant.

After two years in the pandemic, with a growing pool of anti-European feelings, AUR has got to 17% voting intention with an increasing collection of anti-European emotions. From now on, the sky is the limit for the nationalists.

While the Socialists from PSD – Social Democratic Party dropped one point, the Liberals from PNL – National Liberal Party climbed one in the voting intention. Meanwhile, AUR reached 17%.

The rising of the nationalist movement happened in a context when this political formation behaved as the single one in the Opposition. This, of course, includes the latest protests at the Parliament, where people manifested against restrictions.

By taking the side of the majority of Romanians, fighting against restrictions, by manifesting against the abuses of the authorities, AUR leaders know they could go further, above 20%. This is when the party will play a significant role in Romania’s political and social life.

Along with this, we can expect two central ideas to be approached: the concept of the unification between the two sister countries, Romania and the Republic of Moldova, and the idea of opposing the autocracy of the European institutions. Euroskepticism will grow, and the thought of getting the country out of the European Union will increase awareness.

Does the European Union think Poland and Hungary pose a risk to the Union when discussing abandoning the European project? Wait and see what will happen in a year or so when AUR and the other parties will enter the pre-election year!

You might also be interested in reading the opinion poll in July 2023, which places AUR second in Romania.

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