"Ciolacu guarantees": Firea remains the candidate for the mayor of Bucharest

The political scene is filled with tremors, but the "pillars" of the parties manage to stand firm, regardless of their number and intensity. One such case is former minister Gabriela Firea. Marcel Ciolacu, the president of the Social Democrats (PSD), has stated that there is a current decision, one that has not been changed, that Gabriela Firea is the PSD candidate for the Mayor of Bucharest. He added that the party's candidates for local elections will be decided after the European Parliament elections: "There is a decision at this moment, and it has not been changed, that Mrs. Gabriela Firea is the PSD candidate for the Mayor of Bucharest. We have not made any other decision. We all know, and I can say this without reservation, that Minister Gabriela Firea is not to blame in the 'horror nursing homes' case. We all know this truth. Whether Mrs. Gabriela Firea will remain or not is a completely different discussion that primarily concerns Mrs. Gabriela Firea and her decision."

Prime Minister Ciolacu further clarified that the order in which candidacies will be decided is natural, following the chronological order of the elections: "As the party president, my priority is the first elections. The first elections are the European Parliament elections. After the European Parliament elections, we will decide together with my colleagues on the candidates for the local elections. No candidate for county council president, general mayor, or county seat mayor will be decided because that is the responsibility of the National Political Council, until after the European Parliament elections, as it should be." On the other hand, Alfred Simonis, the interim president of the Chamber of Deputies, also spoke about Gabriela Firea's candidacy: "I know Mrs. Firea's intention, and she could be a very good candidate for the Mayor of Bucharest. Even though she lost in 2020, against a united right-wing front, she achieved a very good score of over 30%. I don't see why she couldn't be the PSD candidate, but that's not for me to decide; the party will decide based on what the people of Bucharest want."

After the scandal surrounding the "horror nursing homes," which led to her resignation as a minister, Gabriela Firea stated that it would be premature to exit politics, but the decision would be made by the Romanian people who will vote next year. Firea emphasized that accusations were made against her despite the fact that she is not under investigation by state authorities.