PSD is waiting for the end of August to determine its candidate for the presidential elections

PSD members and sympathizers are waiting for the Congress of that political formation to find out who will be their candidate in the presidential elections that will take place on November 24 (first round) and December 8 (second round).

Taking into account the date of the presidential elections, it seems that the social democratic leader, Prime Minister Marcel Ciolacu will not be the PSD candidate for the presidency, if we are to give absolute credence to the statement made by him on June 14, 2024 at Sâmbăta de Sus: "I announced very it is clear that in December I will not run for the position of president from the PSD side. PSD, especially after winning the elections and after 20 years of right-wing president, will have its own candidate. The PSD president is always one of the options, that's normal. But I will not run in December, if the elections will take place then and not in September as we initially agreed in the governing coalition".

However, it is not excluded that Marcel Ciolacu will change his mind, as he did regarding the change of the date of the presidential elections. Although he stated last month that they will take place in September, that it is the decision of the prime minister, in the meantime the leader of the PSD turned around, discussed with the opposition parties and the partners in the governing coalition and decided that the presidential elections will take place in 24 November and December 8.

So it is possible that Marcel Ciolacu will participate in the presidential election, even if on Sâmbăta de Sus he let it be understood that it was the turn of the young people in the party and that the electorate gave a signal in this regard. It is certain that the future candidate of the PSD for the presidency will be determined by the delegates to the Congress, an event at which Marcel Ciolacu said last Thursday that he will put to a vote even the proposal to support an independent by the social democrats, the name most often circulated in the last time being Mircea Geoană, the deputy general secretary of NATO, who is in first place in the trust list in all opinion polls.

Regarding the PSD Congress, although Marcel Ciolacu said last month that it will take place in July, Paul Stănescu, the general secretary of the social democrats, said on Friday that it will most likely take place at the end of August and will have two components - the election party leadership and the establishment of the candidate for the Presidency of Romania.

He added that anyone can run for the congress - both for the leadership of the party and to be a candidate in the presidential elections, if he has support in the party.

Paul Stănescu stated: "What I want from the PSD: the candidate for the Presidency of Romania should be a PSD member. But congress will say not what I want. I, as a simple party member, if you will, would not accept an independent candidate. The party validates a candidate, that he is a party member, that he is from outside the party, but the party president also has a personal option. He, if he wants to run, must still be validated by the party and Marcel Ciolacu must be validated by the party. He, as president, as a party member and as a man, has his option, I run or I don't run. He will probably announce his candidacy later or not, but that also depends on him, because someone who doesn't want to run can't go. Only Mr. Ciolacu knows that, we don't know, neither I, nor Mr. Tudose, nor Grindeanu. It is the personal opinion of our president".

It is certain that at this moment PSD members and sympathizers still have to wait until the end of August to know who they are voting with in the presidential election. Only when they find out the name of the candidate will they be able to assess the chances that the PSD will win the position of president of the country after 20 years in which it was held by the parties on the right of the political chest in our country.