Nicusor Dan names a fourth prime ministerial candidate
On Monday evening, October 5, after seven hours of talks with the leaders of the parliamentary factions, Romania’s president nominated Luca Niculescu as prime minister.
Niculescu is 55. He is a non-partisan diplomat with long experience in journalism. The president is likely counting on his diplomatic skills. He may also hope that Niculescu can persuade lawmakers. At this point, Dan has few other options in the long-running government crisis.
Niculescu is now a State Secretary at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs. He is also Romania’s national coordinator for the country’s bid to join the OECD. From 1992 to 2016, he worked as a journalist. He was editor-in-chief of RFI Romania. He also worked as a Romania correspondent for several French media outlets. From 2016 to 2022, he served as Romania’s ambassador to France.
In his first statement, the prime minister-designate was quick to pay tribute to Brussels.
“My first task will be to form a parliamentary majority that would vote for a government deeply committed to Romania’s European and Euro-Atlantic course,” Niculescu said.
Can the fourth candidate for prime minister use his diplomatic skills to win over a majority of lawmakers? That remains a big question.
His only chance may be to win support from the Social Democrats. They once initiated the no-confidence vote against Bolojan. The previous candidate, Siegfried Mureșan, treated them openly rudely. As a result, he ended his own chances of becoming prime minister.
The Social Democrats are not eager to support Dan’s latest candidate. They also want a clear reform plan.
“The PSD will not participate and will not give a blank check to a political arrangement that would lead to another adventure,” party leader Sorin Grindeanu said on Facebook.
If the Social Democrats keep this position, the new attempt to form a government is almost certain to suffer the same fate as the previous ones.
