Marcel Ciolacu does not want Klaus Iohannis as a senator

The social-democratic parliamentarians will not approve the bill initiated by the PNL on granting the possibility for the country's president to run on the list of any political party in the parliamentary elections. The president of the PSD, Prime Minister Marcel Ciolacu, said yesterday, before the meeting of the social-democratic leaders: "I will recommend to my colleagues not to vote for such a project". The statement of the Head of the Government comes after he claimed on Saturday that in his opinion, a legislative amendment is not needed for the president to run for the parliamentary elections on December 1.

Because of PSD's position, but also the opinion of the Legislative Council, whose president, Florin Iordache, claims that "the president of Romania has the right to run for the position of senator or deputy on the list of a political party, political alliance or electoral alliance, even and in the absence of the expected norm", the liberal leaders yesterday asked the Central Electoral Bureau (BEC) to rule on such a candidacy in the case of Klaus Iohannis, or rather whether a legal provision is needed in this regard or not. As a result of this request to the BEC, the PNL no longer put the debate of the amendment on the agenda of the Permanent Bureau of the Senate until it receives a response from the institution that will oversee the organization and conduct of the parliamentary and presidential elections.

The draft law submitted last week by the PNL contains a single amendment to the electoral legislation, which would allow President Klaus Iohannis, still in office, to run as an independent on the liberal list in the December 1 parliamentary elections.

The Liberals need a majority to pass the bill urgently through Parliament, so that its provisions will apply to this year's parliamentary elections.

Regarding this legislative project, Augustin Zegrean, the former president of the CCR, states that, in order to be able to run for this year's parliamentary elections, Klaus Iohannis must resign from the position of president of the country, because he cannot run a legal electoral campaign from the highest office of the state, which is cross-party.

"Article 84 of the Constitution says that the President of Romania, during his term of office, cannot be part of a political party and cannot hold a public or private office", said Augustin Zegrean, who also said that the draft law initiated by the PNL it is "outside democratic rules".

Meanwhile, President Klaus Iohannis, in a ceremony that was considered by some political analysts as a captatio benevolentiae (ed. - winning goodwill) of the PSD, decorated Mihai Busuioc, the president of the Court of Accounts of Romania, former Secretary General of the Government, at the time when PSD was led by Liviu Dragnea, and Aurelian Bădulescu (advisor at the Court of Accounts), former deputy mayor general of the Capital, during the mandate of Gabriela Firea, known for his aggressive verbal outbursts to journalists and some politicians. Mihai Busuioc was decorated with the National Order "Star of Romania" in the rank of Officer, and Aurelian Bădulescu received the National Order "For Merit" in the rank of Knight.