PSD and PNL have half resolved the situation of candidacies for the European Parliament, but the places that depend exclusively on an electoral performance are still being negotiated, as is the solution for the Capital City Hall, where there could be separate candidacies.
Ramona Chiriac (center) is the candidate who will open the PSD-PNL list PHOTO Coalj Adevărul
The result of the last weeks of negotiations between PSD and PNL finally led to the election of Ramona Chiriac, head of the European Commission Representation in Romania and a career diplomat. According to the “Adevărul” information from the top of the Coalition, Ramona Chiriac was the person Marcel Ciolacu, head of the PSD, insisted on, the liberals being rather inclined towards another option, also politically independent, i.e. the head of the National Confederation for Female Entrepreneurship (CONAF), Cristina Chiriac.
Also from the PSD leadership came the request that the list of candidates for the European Parliament should not include current ministers, given that both behind closed doors and in the public environment, some dignitaries have expressed their intention. Publicly, only Alexandru Rafila spoke that he would like to go to Brussels. Instead, names such as Simona Bucura-Oprescu (Minister of Labor) or Alina Gorghiu (Minister of Justice) were circulated in the parties.
On the other hand, according to “Adevărul” information, the liberals insist that the candidacy of some ministers be allowed, at least for the local ones. And the eyes of the PNL are focused primarily on Adrian Veștea, the Minister of Development and former head of the Braşov County Council. The other days, in a conference to launch three candidates for mayors, Vestea stated that he has not yet made the decision whether he will run for the Brașov City Hall or the Brașov County Council. A second minister who could enter the local fight is Sebastian Burduja, the Minister of Energy, for the moment the PNL's first choice for the Capital City Hall.
Negotiations until the last moment
On the one hand, some candidates breathed a sigh of relief, while even on the last hundred meters some try to grab a place as far in front as possible. On places given as cert eligible are, in addition to Ramona Chiriac, the opening of the list, people like: Mihai Tudose (PSD), Rareș Bogdan (PNL), Claudiu Manda (PSD), Dan Motreanu (PNL), Vasile Dîncu (PSD), Daniel Buda (PNL), Victor Negrescu (PSD), Adina Vălean (PNL), Maria Grapini (PUSL, but taken on the PSD list), Siegfried Mureșan (PNL) and Dragoș Benea (PSD). Then begins a series of candidates who will have to shoot as hard as possible for their party to get the highest possible score, being quite well-known names, from Vasile Blaga and Gheorghe Falcă, to Dan Nica and Titus Corlățean, but also lesser known people, such as Gheorghe Cârciu, head of the Department for Romanians Everywhere.
They are still causing problems for the Cristian Popescu Piedone and PUSL Coalition, which he leads as executive president. Social-democratic sources claim that a minimum of two eligible seats are required from the PUSL, one being Maria Grapini's. Moreover, a claim from Piedone, currently decided to run for the Capital, is an eligible seat for his daughter in the European Parliament, but also support for a new parliamentary mandate for Vlad Piedone, his son, now a deputy.
Expediting submission of lists
This week, the whole discussion is finished, head-to-tail, on the European parliament, and meetings of the two parties are also expected, for the validation of the internal candidacies and the way of division. And the calendar is pretty tight. By April 10, the list of candidates must be submitted, as well as the formalities regarding the formation of the alliance, which must be registered, in order to appear on the voting lists. On the other hand, the submission of local lists is later, that is, the deadline is April 30, that is, before the mini-holiday of May 1 and Easter, so that the electoral campaign can then begin on May 10.
The coalition is heading for separate candidacies
In the conditions where the two formations of the Coalition do not agree on the common candidate, because it would create both internal dissatisfaction, but also end up losing electoral percentages, PSD and PNL are rather moving towards separate candidacies, although the door is left open for a single name settlement. The first vice-president of the PNL, Rareș Bogdan, declared, at the party's headquarters in Modrogan, that there is a possibility of separate candidacies, a possibility estimated at 95%. The liberal stated that he expects a four-way race for Bucharest, with Sebastian Burduja, Nicușor Dan, Gabriela Firea and Cristian Popescu Piedone, estimating that the elections will most likely be won by 26-28%, given the fragmentation of the vote. Asked who will win them, Bogdan declared himself confident in Burduja's chances: “Who campaigns better, who has the least degree of hate, who manages to mobilize the electoral pools of his own party and who manages to come up with a project for Bucharest”, added the liberal.
For his part, Lucian Romașcanu, PSD spokesman, emphasized that the Coalition formations tend towards separate candidacies, because a candidate from one formation fails to attract voters from the other party. “I saw yesterday the polls produced by the polling houses of the two parties, and the things read there and especially the fact that a PSD candidate or a PNL candidate fails to mobilize the electoral pools of the other parties or the other party make us look seriously towards the version of the candidates from each individual party”, stated Romașcanu, who stated that he is optimistic that the final decision will be made this week, pointing out that the idea of the joint candidate “has not completely failed”.
