2019 Romanian presidential election
Presidential elections were held in Romania on 10 November 2019, with a second round held on 24 November 2019. Incumbent President of Romania Klaus Iohannis, first elected in 2014, was eligible for re-election. He defeated Viorica Dăncilă in the second round of the election, receiving 66 percent of the vote–the second-highest vote share on record after Ion Iliescu. In accordance with the constitution, he will be required to leave office in 2024.
Background
won the last presidential election in 2014 and was sworn in for his first term on 21 December 2014. According to the Article 83 of the Constitution of Romania, the "term of office of the President of Romania is five years, being exercised from the date the oath was taken," but only for up to two terms. In June 2018, incumbent president Iohannis publicly announced his intention of running for a second term as president. The electoral calendar for the presidential elections was set by the Romanian Government.The final results for the first round were publicly announced by Central Electoral Bureau and Permanent Electoral Authority on 14 November 2019. The results were forwarded to the Constitutional Court of Romania that validated the results on 15 November 2019. After the Constitutional Court's validation, the results were sent for publication to the Official Journal of Romania. Only after the publication by the Official Journal, the results for the first round of the elections became official.
The Central Electoral Bureau forwarded the final results for the second round to the Constitutional Court of Romania for validation on 28 November 2019, on the last day of the settled electoral calendar. The Constitutional Court of Romania validated the results in the same day.
Candidates
National Liberal Party
President Klaus Iohannis was eligible for re-election. His candidacy in the 2014 elections was supported by the National Liberal Party, whose President he was at that time. Upon taking office as president, Iohannis suspended his PNL membership, as the Constitution does not allow the president to be a formal member of a political party during his term. Ludovic Orban, the president of the PNL, reconfirmed the party's support for Iohannis after the elections. On 11 March 2018, the National Council of PNL formally endorsed Klaus Iohannis for a new term as president.Social Democratic Party
Liviu Pleșoianu, a member of the Chamber of Deputies for Bucharest since 2016 for the Social Democratic Party, declared his candidacy on 23 July 2017. Liviu Dragnea, President of the Chamber of Deputies since 2016,and Gabriela Firea, Mayor of Bucharest since 2016, are thought to be other potential PSD candidates. However, both have refuted these media speculations, Firea stating she wants to finish her term as mayor, while Liviu Dragnea rejected the idea and stated he and the PSD concentrate on the governing program and the parliamentary agenda, as Dragnea is President of the Chamber of Deputies. After being convicted on corruption charges on 27 May 2019, Dragnea became ineligible to run for president.
Save Romania Union and PLUS Alliance
, a former President of the Save Romania Union, the third largest political party in the country, believes that the party should run its own candidate for the elections. Dan Barna, the new President of the USR, stated in an interview with Adevărul that the USR would have a presidential candidate, decided by a vote within the party. Barna also said that "Dacian Cioloș may be an option, like any well-known person".Former Minister of Labor in Cioloș Government, Dragoș Pîslaru, who is among the founders of the new party of former Prime Minister, the PLUS+, said the party is ready for a possible candidacy for the presidency of leader Dacian Cioloș. He also stressed that a candidacy of President Iohannis for a new term would not exclude a candidacy of Dacian Cioloș. On 8 June 2018, Cioloș said he will not run against Klaus Iohannis. However he subsequently stated that he would assume any responsibility that his recently founded political party would bestow upon him, not excluding the presidency.
In the aftermath of the results of the 2019 European Parliament elections, USR and PLUS decided to keep the 2020 USR-PLUS Alliance for the presidential elections, and nominated Dan Barna as joint candidate.
Other parties
Many voices inside ALDE suggested that Călin Popescu Tăriceanu, the party leader and President of the Senate, should be the proposal of the PSD–ALDE coalition for the upcoming election and asked for PSD support in this regard. Tăriceanu himself considered that the best option for the presidential election is a PSD–ALDE joint candidacy. On 24 July 2019, ALDE announced that Tăriceanu would run for president on its ticket.In a press conference on 26 October 2017, Victor Ponta, a former Prime Minister and runner-up in the 2014 elections, claimed that his newly established party, Pro Romania, would nominate a candidate in the elections, but denied that he would run for the presidency again.
On 25 August 2019 Theodor Paleologu was designated candidate of the People's Movement Party.
On 7 July 2019 Ramona Ioana Bruynseels launched her candidacy. The announcement was met with surprise and intrigue from political commentators. Bruynseels has set her platform on taking on the broken political system in Romania that she argues is working against the interests of citizens. Bruynseels is a centrist politician and the candidate of the Humanist Power Party. In the time of these elections, the party was controlled from behind the scenes by Romanian mogul and Securitate collaborator Dan Voiculescu.
Candidates qualified for the second round
On 28 November 2019, The Romanian Central Electoral Bureau forwarded the final results to the Constitutional Court of Romania, which validated the results in the same day.| Name | Born | Public Office Experience | Campaign and affiliation | Alma mater and profession | Candidacy Announcement dates |
Klaus Iohannis | 13 06 1959 Sibiu, Sibiu County | President of Romania Mayor of Sibiu Former presidential election: 2014: 30.37%, 54.43% | Motto: Pentru o Românie normală ' Affiliation: PNL Endorsed by: FDGR Endorsement added for the second round: 2020 USR-PLUS Alliance, PMP | Faculty of Physics, Babeș-Bolyai University, Cluj-Napoca Physics teacher | Intention: 11 3 2018 Official: 23 6 2018 BEC filing: 20 9 2019 BEC validation: 22 9 2019 CCR validation for qualifying to the second round: 15 11 2019 CCR validation as President-elect: 28 11 2019 |
Viorica Dăncilă | 16 12 1963 Roșiorii de Vede, Teleorman County | Prime Minister of Romania MEP | Motto: Alături de fiecare român ' Affiliation: PSD Endorsed by: PNȚCD, UNPR Endorsement added for the second round: FN, PNeR | Faculty of Drilling of Wells and Exploitation of Hydrocarbon Deposits, Petroleum and Gas University, Ploiești Oil engineer, petroleum technology teacher | Intention: 11 7 2019 Official: 23 7 2019 BEC filing: 19 9 2019 BEC validation: 20 9 2019 CCR validation for qualifying to the second round: 15 11 2019 CCR validation of the second round results: 28 11 2019 |
Candidates that competed only in the first round
For all these candidates, the competition ended on 15 November 2019, when the Constitutional Court of Romania validated the results of the first round.| Name | Born | Public Office Experience | Affiliation and endorsements | Alma mater and profession | Candidacy Announcement dates |
Dan Barna | 10 07 1975 Sibiu, Sibiu County | Deputy Secretary of State with the Ministry of European Funds | Motto: Fericiți în România ' Affiliation: 2020 USR-PLUS Alliance | Faculty of Law, University of Bucharest lawyer | Intention: 1 7 2019 Official: 13 7 2019 BEC filing: 20 9 2019 BEC validation: 22 9 2019 Second round: Endorsed Klaus Iohannis |
Mircea Diaconu | 24 12 1949 Vlădești, Argeș County | MEP Minister of Culture Senator | Motto: Cu bună credință ' Affiliation: none, supported by The Alliance for One Man | Caragiale Academy of Theatrical Arts and Cinematography, Bucharest actor | Intention: 25 8 2019 Official: 27 8 2019 BEC filing: 21 9 2019 BEC validation: 22 9 2019 Second round: Non-partisan |
Theodor Paleologu | 15 07 1973 Bucharest | Deputy Minister of Culture Ambassador to Denmark | Motto: Respect, educație, performanță ' Affiliation: PMP | Faculty of Philosophy, University of Paris 1 Pantheon-Sorbonne philosophy and political science professor | Intention: 17 7 2019 Official: 25 8 2019 BEC filing: 20 9 2019 BEC validation: 20 9 2019 Second round: Against Viorica Dăncilă, without openly endorsing Klaus Iohannis His party, PMP, openly endorsed Klaus Iohannis: 13 11 2019 |
Hunor Kelemen | 18 10 1967 Cârța, Harghita County | Deputy Minister of Culture Secretary of State with the Minister of Culture Former presidential elections: 2014: 3.47% 2009: 3.83% | Motto: Respect pentru toți ' Affiliation: UDMR | University of Agricultural Sciences and Veterinary Medicine of Cluj-Napoca, Faculty of Philosophy, Babeş-Bolyai University, Cluj-Napoca veterinarian, philosophy teacher | Intention: 23 2 2019 Official: 30 8 2019 BEC filing: 21 9 2019 BEC validation: 22 9 2019 Second round: Endorsed Klaus Iohannis His organization, UDMR, had a non-partisan stance |
Ramona Bruynseels | 14 02 1980 Cluj-Napoca, Cluj County | Secretary of State with the General Secretariat of the Government | Motto: Fără imunitate ' Affiliation: Humanist Power Party | Faculty of Law, Dimitrie Cantemir Christian University, Cluj-Napoca jurist | Intention: 08 6 2019 Official: 8 7 2019 BEC filing: 22 9 2019 BEC validation: 24 9 2019 Second round: Non-partisan Her party, PPU, advised its followers to boycott: 18 11 2019 |
Alexandru Cumpănașu | 29 3 1981 Caracal, Olt County | Motto: Ori noi, ori ei ' Affiliation: none | "Ioniță Asan" high-school, Caracal civic activist | Intention: 29 8 2019 Official: 02 9 2019 BEC filing: 22 9 2019 BEC validation: 24 9 2019 Second round: Against Viorica Dăncilă, without openly endorsing Klaus Iohannis | |
:ro:Viorel Cataramă|Viorel Cataramă | 31 01 1955 Bacău, Bacău County | Senator Secretary of State with the Ministry of Commerce and Tourism | Motto: Muncești și câștigi ' Affiliation: Liberal Right Party | Faculty of Commerce, Academy of Economic Studies, Bucharest economist | Intention: 10 6 2019 Official: 31 8 2019 BEC filing: 18 9 2019 BEC rejection: 20 9 2019 CCR appeal: 21 9 2019 CCR approval: 22 9 2019 Second round: Boycott |
:ro:Bogdan Stanoevici|Bogdan Stanoevici | 22 01 1958 Bucharest | Secretary of State with the Minister for Relations with Abroad Romanians | Motto: România, din nou acasă ' Affiliation: none | Caragiale Academy of Theatrical Arts and Cinematography, Bucharest actor | Intention: 29 3 2019 Official: 3 5 2019 BEC filing: 22 9 2019 BEC validation: 24 9 2019 Second round: Endorsed Viorica Dăncilă |
Cătălin Ivan | 23 12 1978 Galați, Galați County | MEP Iași County Counselor | Motto: Președinte pentru Români ' Affiliation: Alternative for National Dignity | Faculty of Economics and Business Management, Alexandru Ioan Cuza University, Iași economist | Intention: 17 9 2019 Official: 17 9 2019 BEC filing: 22 9 2019 BEC validation: 24 9 2019 Second round: Against Klaus Iohannis, without openly endorsing Viorica Dăncilă |
:ro:Ninel Peia|Ninel Peia | 07 10 1969 Brastavățu, Olt County | Deputy | Motto: Un președinte ca niciunul ' Affiliation: Romanian Nationhood Party | Faculty of Law at an unspecified university in Bucharest jurist | Intention: 04 6 2019 Official: 04 6 2019 BEC filing: 22 9 2019 BEC validation: 24 9 2019 Second round: Endorsed Viorica Dăncilă |
Sebastian Popescu | 12 02 1982 Balș, Olt County | Motto: Pentru o nouă Românie ' Affiliation: New Romania Party | Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, Banat University of Agricultural Sciences and Veterinary Medicine, Timișoara veterinarian | Intention: 17 6 2018 Official: 17 6 2018 BEC filing: 22 9 2019 BEC validation: 24 9 2019 Second round: Blank vote | |
:ro:John Ion Banu|John Ion Banu | 08 07 1960 Câmpulung, Argeș County | Motto: Certitudinea românilor ' Affiliation: Romanian Nation Party | Politehnica University of Bucharest mechanical engineer | Intention: 13 6 2019 Official: 13 6 2019 BEC filing: 22 9 2019 BEC validation: 24 9 2019 Second round: Boycott |
Withdrawn candidates
| Name | Born | Public Office Experience | Affiliation and endorsmenent | Alma mater and Profession | Candidacy Announcement dates |
Dragoș Dinulescu | Câmpina, Prahova County | Affiliation: USR | Faculty of Dental Medicine, Titu Maiorescu University, Bucharest dentist | Intention: 1 7 2019 Withdrawal: 13 7 2019 Endorsed Dan Barna, after he became party nominee: 13 7 2019 | |
:ro:Mihai Goțiu|Mihai Goțiu | 06 12 1973 Ilia, Hunedoara County | Deputy | Affiliation: USR | Faculty of Journalism, Babeș-Bolyai University, Cluj-Napoca journalist, writer | Intention: 1 7 2019 Withdrawal: 13 7 2019 Endorsed Dan Barna, after he became party nominee: 13 7 2019 |
Dumitru Stanca | Dolj County | Affiliation: USR | Faculty of History, University of Galați Nicolae Bălcescu Land Forces Academy, Sibiu military | Intention: 1 7 2019 Withdrawal: 13 7 2019 Endorsed Dan Barna, after he became party nominee: 13 7 2019 | |
Dacian Cioloș | 27 07 1969 Zalău, Sălaj County | MEP Prime Minister of Romania European Commissioner for Agriculture and Rural Development Minister of Agriculture Ministerial advisor with the Ministry of Agriculture SAPARD implementation manager with the Representation of the European Commission in Romania Final poll to appear : 10.4% | Affiliation: PLUS | Faculty of Horticulture, University of Agricultural Sciences and Veterinary Medicine of Cluj-Napoca horticultural engineer | Intention: 2 3 2019 Withdrawal: 19 7 2019 Endorsed Dan Barna, after he got party endorsement: 19 7 2019 Endorsed Klaus Iohannis: 11 11 2019 |
Ecaterina Andronescu | 07 04 1948 Malovăț, Mehedinți County | Senator Minister of Education Deputy | Affiliation: PSD | Faculty of Chemistry, Politehnica University of Bucharest chemistry professor | Intention: 15 1 2019 Withdrawal: 22 7 2019 Endorsed Viorica Dăncilă, after she became party nominee: 22 7 2019 |
:ro:Șerban Nicolae|Șerban Nicolae | 05 04 1968 Bucharest | Senator Minister for Liaison with Parliament Presidential advisor | Affiliation: PSD | Faculty of Law, Romanian-American University, Bucharest mechanical worker, lawyer | Intention: 13 6 2019 Withdrawal: 22 7 2019 Endorsed Viorica Dăncilă, after she became party nominee: 22 7 2019 |
:ro:Eugen Teodorovici|Eugen Teodorovici | 12 08 1971 Bucharest | Senator Minister of Finance Minister of European Funds Final poll to appear : 5% | Affiliation: PSD | Faculty of Commerce, Academy of Economic Studies, Bucharest economist | Intention: 22 6 2019 Withdrawal: 22 7 2019 Endorsed Viorica Dăncilă, after she became party nominee: 22 7 2019 |
Mihai Fifor | 10 05 1970 Drobeta-Turnu Severin, Mehedinți County | Senator acting Prime Minister of Romania Minister of Defence Minister of Economy | Affiliation: PSD | Faculty of Letters and History, University of Craiova museum curator | Intention: 23 6 2019 Withdrawal: 22 7 2019 Endorsed Viorica Dăncilă, after she became party nominee: 22 7 2019 |
Gabriela Firea | 13 07 1972 Bacău, Bacău County | Mayor of Bucharest Senator Secretary of State for Governmental Communication Final poll to appear : 17% | Affiliation: PSD | Faculty of Letters, University of Bucharest journalist | Denied interest: 26 5 2019 Intention: 18 7 2019 Withdrawal: 23 7 2019 Endorsed Viorica Dăncilă: 23 7 2019 |
Mihail Neamțu | 16 04 1978 Făgăraș, Brașov County | Affiliation: PMP Endorsed by: Alternative Right Party | Faculty of Philosophy, Babeș-Bolyai University, Cluj-Napoca Faculty of Orthodox Theology, Babeș-Bolyai University, Cluj-Napoca theologist, writer | Intention: 19 7 2019 Withdrawal: 24 8 2019 Endorsed Theodor Paleologu: 24 8 2019 | |
George Mioc | 20 04 1951 Cărpiniș, Timiș County | Final poll to appear : 1% | Affiliation: none Endorsed by: The New Republic | Mechanical engineer | Intention: 19 7 2019 Withdrawal: 25 8 2019 Endorsed Theodor Paleologu: 25 8 2019 |
Robert Turcescu | 03 05 1975 Pitești, Argeș County | Deputy | Affiliation: PMP | :ro:Școala Superioară de Jurnalistică|Superior School of Journalism, Bucharest Faculty of Journalism and Communication Sciences, University of Bucharest journalist | Intention: 19 7 2019 Withdrawal: 25 8 2019 Endorsed Theodor Paleologu, after he became party nominee: 25 8 2019 |
Adrian Papahagi | 20 3 1976 Cluj-Napoca, Cluj County | Counsellor with the Ministry of Foreign Affairs | Affiliation: none | Faculty of Philology, Babeș-Bolyai University, Cluj-Napoca École normale supérieure, Paris philologist | Intention: 19 7 2019 Withdrawal: 25 8 2019 Endorsed Theodor Paleologu: 28 8 2019 |
Corina Crețu | 24 06 1967 Bucharest | MEP European Commissioner for Regional Policy Senator Deputy Presidential advisor Final poll to appear : 4% | Affiliation: Pro Romania | Faculty of Cybernetics, Academy of Economic Studies, Bucharest economist, journalist | Intention: 08 1 2019 Withdrawal: 26 8 2019 Endorsed Mircea Diaconu, after he got party endorsement: 26 8 2019 |
Călin Popescu-Tăriceanu | 14 01 1952 Bucharest | Senator President of the Senate of Romania acting Minister of Foreign Affairs Prime Minister of Romania Minister of Industry and Commerce Deputy Final poll to appear : 12.7% Former presidential election: 2014: 5.36% | Affiliation: ALDe | Faculty of Hydrotechnical Engineering, Technical University of Civil Engineering of Bucharest hydrotechnical engineer | Intention: 11 4 2019 Suspended: 03 6 2019 Resumed: 14 7 2019 Withdrawal: 26 8 2019 First round: Endorsed Mircea Diaconu, after he got party endorsement Second round: Non-partisan |
Sorin Cîmpeanu | 18 04 1968 Bucharest | Deputy acting Prime Minister of Romania Minister of Education | Affiliation: Pro Romania | Faculty of Land Reclamation and Environmental Engineering, University of Agronomic Sciences and Veterinary Medicine of Bucharest agriculture professor | Intention: 18 6 2019 Withdrawal: 26 8 2019 Endorsed Mircea Diaconu, after he got party endorsement: 26 8 2019 |
Florin Călinescu | 29 04 1956 Timișoara, Timiș County | Affiliation: Green Party | Caragiale Academy of Theatrical Arts and Cinematography, Bucharest actor, TV entertainer | Intention: 12 1 2019 Suspended: 24 7 2019 Resumed: 03 8 2019 Withdrawal: 30 8 2019 | |
Mădălina Baroncea | 20 07 1973 Bucharest | Affiliation: none | Faculty of Commerce and Marketing, Academy of Economic Studies, Bucharest marketing specialist | Intention: 19 3 2019 Withdrawal: 30 8 2019 Endorsed Alexandru Cumpănașu: 30 8 2019 | |
Marian Bătăiosu | 30 10 1966 Bucharest | Affiliation: none | Faculty of Engineering and Technical Systems Management, Politehnica University of Bucharest mechanical engineer | Intention: 05 9 2019 Official: 05 9 2019 Withdrawal: 12 9 2019 | |
Avram Iancu | 18 02 1976 Petroșani, Hunedoara County | Affiliation: none | Technical and Administrative College, Petroșani librarian | Intention: 7 8 2019 Withdrawal: 15 9 2019 | |
George Alexander | 16 01 1961 Voicești, Vâlcea County | Affiliation: none | Oslo Metropolitan University pedagogue, writer | Intention: 13 8 2019 Official: 13 8 2019 Withdrawal: 19 9 2019 Endorsed :ro:Ninel Peia|Ninel Peia: 04 10 2019 | |
Sorin Budăcan | 15 08 1975 Bistrița, Bistrița-Năsăud County | Affiliation: none | Intention: 06 09 2017 Official: 06 09 2017 Withdrawal: 22 09 2019 | ||
Laurențiu Primo | 12 02 1982 Balș, Olt County | Affiliation: Meritocracy Movement | writer | Intention: 29 09 2018 Official: 29 09 2018 Failure to file candidacy to BEC confirmed on: 23 9 2019 | |
:ro:Florentin Pandele|Florentin Pandele | 03 04 1961 Petrăchioaia, Ilfov County | Mayor of Voluntari, Ilfov County | Affiliation: none | Faculty of Navigation, Mircea cel Bătrân Naval Academy Faculty of Law, :ro:Universitatea Bioterra din București|Bioterra University, Bucharest seaman | Intention: 30 5 2019 Official: 30 5 2019 Withdrawal: 22 9 2019 Endorsed Viorica Dăncilă: 29 9 2019 |
Andrei Stoican | Bucharest | Affiliation: Romanian National Movement | Faculty of Law Jurist | Intention: 21 6 2019 Withdrawal: 22 9 2019 | |
:ro:Liviu Pleșoianu|Liviu Pleșoianu | 24 01 1980 Bucharest | Deputy | Affiliation: PSD | Faculty of Philosophy and Journalism, University of Bucharest journalist | Intention: 25 6 2019 Official: 13 7 2019 Withdrawal: 22 9 2019 |
Emanuel Onoriu | 20 11 1971 Bucharest | Affiliation: National Christian Union of the Roma | Faculty of Pentecostal Theology, Ovidius University, Constanța reverend | Intention: 5 8 2019 Official: 5 8 2019 Failure to file candidacy to BEC confirmed on: 24 9 2019 | |
Gheorghe Funar | 29 09 1949 Sânnicolau Mare, Timiș County | Senator Mayor of Cluj-Napoca Former presidential elections: 2014: 0.47% 1996: 3.2% 1992: 10.8% | Affiliation: Our Romania Party | Faculty of Economics and Business Management, Babeș-Bolyai University, Cluj-Napoca Economist | Intention: 21 8 2019 Official: 21 8 2019 Failure to file candidacy to BEC announced on: 27 9 2019 Second round: Endorsed Viorica Dăncilă |
Cătălin Berenghi | 12 10 1980 Bucharest | Affiliation: Conservatory Autonomous Dacism Party | Sapper, fighter | Intention: 28 8 2019 Official: 28 8 2019 Withdrawal: 22 9 2019 First round: Boycott | |
Dorin Stoichescu | Caransebeș, Caraș Severin County | Affiliation: "The Spear of Dracula" Party | Intention: 03 9 2019 Official: 03 9 2019 Withdrawal: 22 9 2019 | ||
Miron Cozma | 25 08 1954 Derna, Bihor County | Affiliation: Workers' Social-Democrat Party | Faculty of Mining Equipment, University of Petroșani mining engineer | Intention: 18 3 2019 Official: 18 3 2019 First BEC filing: 18 9 2019 First BEC rejection: 19 9 2019 Second BEC filing: 20 9 2019 Final BEC rejection: 22 9 2019 | |
Maria Minea | 02 10 1962 | Affiliation: Patriot Romanians of Everywhere Party | Lawyer | Intention: 27 6 2019 Official: 17 8 2019 BEC filing: 22 9 2019 BEC rejection: 24 9 2019 | |
Claudiu Crăciun | 02 11 1978 Bucharest | Affiliation: Demos Party | National University of Political Studies and Public Administration, Bucharest civic activist, political science professor | Intention: 16 7 2019 Official: 16 7 2019 BEC filing : 22 9 2019 BEC rejection: 25 9 2019 Second round: Non-partisan 22 11 2019 | |
:ro:Bobby Păunescu|Bobby Păunescu | 8 9 1974 Bucharest | Affiliation: none | Faculty of International Management, Franklin University Switzerland, Lugano movie producer | Intention: 11 8 2019 BEC filing: 22 9 2019 BEC rejection: 24 9 2019 CCR appeal: 25 9 2019 CCR rejection: 26 9 2019 | |
Marin Duță | Affiliation: none | University of Agronomic Sciences and Veterinary Medicine of Bucharest agricultural engineer | BEC filing : 22 9 2019 BEC rejection: 27 9 2019 | ||
:ro:Radu Moraru|Radu Moraru | 24 09 1970 Sfântu Gheorghe, Covasna County | Affiliation: none | Journalist | Intention: 01 12 2018 Official: 20 01 2019 BEC filing : 22 09 2019 BEC rejection: 27 09 2019 CCR appeal: 27 9 2019 CCR rejection: 30 9 2019 | |
Bogdan-Mihail Zamfir | Affiliation: none | Lawyer | Official: 18 7 2019 BEC filing : 22 9 2019 BEC rejection: 27 9 2019 CCR appeal: 28 9 2019 CCR rejection: 30 9 2019 | ||
Nicolae-George Epurescu | 18 11 1974 Buzău, Buzău County | Affiliation: The Civic Alternative | Faculty of Physics, University of Bucharest physics scientist | Intention: 7 9 2019 Official: 7 9 2019 BEC filing : 21 9 2019 BEC rejection: 26 9 2019 CCR appeal: 27 9 2019 CCR rejection: 30 9 2019 |
Declined to be candidates
These individuals have been the subject of speculation, but have publicly denied or recanted interest in running for president.| Name | Born | Public Office Experience | Affiliation and endorsmenent | Alma mater and profession | Candidacy Announcement dates |
Ludovic Orban | 25 5 1963 Brașov, Brașov County | Prime Minister of Romania Deputy Minister of Transport Deputy Mayor of Bucharest Secretary of State with the Public Servants Agency Secretary of State with Public Information Department General Secretary with Disabled Persons Directorate Communications Director with Energy Policies Agency Local counselor, Sector 1, Bucharest Local counselor, Sector 3, Bucharest Final poll to appear : 2.5% | Affiliation: PNL | Faculty of Industrial Machinery Technology, Transilvania University of Brașov technological engineer | Denied interest: 8 4 2017 Endorsed Klaus Iohannis: 8 4 2017 |
Victor Ponta | 20 09 1972 Bucharest | Deputy Prime Minister of Romania Minister of Parliamentary Relations Minister-Delegate for Control of International Grant Programmes Implementation and for Monitoring the Application of the Acquis Communautaire Head of the Governmental Control Department Final poll to appear : 14.0% Former presidential election: 2014: 40.44%, 45.56% | Affiliation: Pro Romania | Faculty of Law, University of Bucharest prosecutor | Denied interest: 26 10 2017 First round: Endorsed Mircea Diaconu, after he got party endorsement Second round: Against Klaus Iohannis, without openly endorsing Viorica Dăncilă |
Lia Olguța Vasilescu | 18 11 1974 Craiova, Dolj County | Deputy Minister of Labour Mayor of Craiova Senator | Affiliation: PSD | Faculty of Philology and History, University of Craiova journalist | Denied interest: 17 01 2019 Endorsed Liviu Dragnea: 17 1 2019 Endorsed Viorica Dăncilă, after she became party nominee: 22 7 2019 |
Liviu Dragnea | 28 10 1962 Gratia, Teleorman County | President of the Chamber of Deputies Deputy Minister of Regional Development and Administration Deputy Prime Minister of Romania Minister of Administration of the Interior President of Teleorman County Council Prefect of Teleorman County Final poll to appear : 7% | Former affiliation: PSD | Faculty of Transport, Politehnica University of Bucharest Faculty of Management and Public Administration, Ecological University of Bucharest transport engineer, bar owner | Denied interest: 26 05 2019 Endorsed Gabriela Firea: 26 05 2019 |
Laura Codruța Kövesi | 15 05 1973 Sfântu Gheorghe, Covasna County | European Chief Prosecutor Chief Prosecutor of the National Anticorruption Directorate High Representative of the Ministry of Justice for the Relation with the European Commission General-Prosecutor of Romania Chief Prosecutor of the Directorate for Investigating Organized Crime and Terrorism office in Sibiu County Final poll to appear : 11% | Affiliation: none | Faculty of Law, Babeș-Bolyai University, Cluj-Napoca prosecutor | Denied interest: 28 05 2019 |
:ro:Mihai Gâdea|Mihai Gâdea | 10 01 1977 Bucharest | Affiliation: none | Faculty of Adventist Theology TV anchor | Denied interest: 01 06 2019 First round: Endorsed :ro:Ramona Bruynseels|Ramona Bruynseels 08 6 2019 | |
Ioan-Aurel Pop | 01 01 1955 Țaga, Cluj County | President of the Romanian Academy | Affiliation: none | Faculty of History and Philosophy, Babeș-Bolyai University, Cluj-Napoca history professor | Denied interest: 10 06 2019 |
Cristian Diaconescu | 02 07 1959 Bucharest | Presidential advisor Minister of Foreign Affairs Senator Minister of Justice Secretary of State for European Affairs with Ministry of Foreign Affairs Secretary of State for Bilateral Affairs with Ministry of Foreign Affairs Final poll to appear : 5% | Affiliation: none | Faculty of Law, University of Bucharest lawyer | Denied interest: 12 07 2019 |
Eugen Tomac | 27 06 1981 Babele, Odessa Oblast, Ukraine | MEP Deputy Secretary of State for Romanians Abroad, within the Ministry of Foreign Affairs Presidential advisor Final poll to appear : 0.6% | Affiliation: PMP | Faculty of History, University of Bucharest historian, journalist | Denied interest: 12 07 2019 First round: Endorsed Theodor Paleologu, after he became party nominee Second round: Endorsed Klaus Iohannis |
Timeline
Campaign
The electoral campaign for the first round started on 12 October 2019, 0:00 EET and ended on 9 November 2019, 7:00 EET. The electoral campaign for the second round started on 15 November 2019, 0:00 EET and ended on 23 November 2019, 7:00 EET. According to Romanian law, both campaigns must end at least 24 hours before the official poll openings.Controversies
The candidate Dan Barna did not comply with the legal requirements regarding the mention of a candidate's first-degree relatives income, in the public declaration of assets. He stated that his wife income - who was at the time employed at Petrom - was "classified". Soon after the story sparked, he declassified his wife's annual income and changed his assets statement.According to a media investigation, Dan Barna was allegedly involved in a financial scheme during his entrepreneurship time. He rejected the allegations.
Media released recordings of conversations that the candidate Ramona Bruynseels had with her staff, regarding allegedly dubious acts committed with her campaign funds by Dan Voiculescu, the informal leader of the party that supports her candidacy.
The candidate :ro:Ninel Peia|Ninel Peia was reported missing, during the night of 6–7 November 2019. He was seen leaving the hotel he was lodging in Cluj-Napoca, at 1:17 am, and did not return. The following morning, he was found at Putna Monastery, 195 km away, stating that he went there "to pray".
The candidate :ro:Viorel Cataramă|Viorel Cataramă was reported as a former informer of the infamous Securitate. He rejected the allegations.
Alexandru Cumpănașu was accused of either forging his BA degree or lying about being a university graduate. He failed to show a Bachelor's degree, while stating that he was a university graduate, without mentioning a university or faculty. He publicly showed an honorary diploma issued by a controversial university of Ukraine, but failed to prove his claimed status of a university graduate. Later on, he mentioned in the documents filed at the Electoral Bureau that he only graduated high-school and did not pursued any university studies. Asked to clear his lack of university studies required for a Master's degree or a Doctor degree, he stated "In my opinion, I pursued university studies".
A radio anchor that hosted a live debate warned the candidate Alexandru Cumpănașu to tone down his language, or else he would be facing exclusion from the debate.
In an electoral show broadcast live by the Romanian public TV station TVR1, Alexandru Cumpănașu showed his skills of gun handling, by firing at sitting balloons. Later, he stated that the submachine gun he used "was a toy-gun".
For the first time in the history of democratic elections in Romania, the first two contenders did not participate in any electoral debate organised between them or together with other candidates.
Campaign financing
This is an overview of the money raised by each candidate, as it was reported to the Permanent Electoral Authority. Total raised are the sum of all contributions.First round
For the first round, the candidates have raised a total of 70,258,904.02 lei. Only the candidates that achieved at least 3% of the votes were entitled to be compensated for their private fundings from the state budget. According to Romanian law, the candidates that achieved less than 3% are not entitled to public compensations. A strange case is the candidate Sebastian Popescu; according to his financial filing, he and his team have not spent any funds, claiming that he used only the online environment for his campaign and no paid ads.| Candidate | Total raised | Private funding | Public funding | Efficiency | Efficiency |
| Iohannis | 18,000,000.00 | 0.00 | 18,000,000.00 | 475,938.94 | 5.16 |
| Dăncilă | 18,210,500.00 | 1,672,500.00 | 16,538,000.00 | 818,081.76 | 8.88 |
| Barna | 7,449,531.31 | 6,984,323.31 | 179,708.00 | 495,974.12 | 5.38 |
| Diaconu | 16,294,924.80 | 15,994,924.80 | 300,000.00 | 1,841,234.44 | 19.99 |
| Paleologu | 7,068,975.00 | 7,068,975.00 | 0.00 | 1,235,834.79 | 13.41 |
| Kelemen | 445,000.00 | 445,000.00 | 0.00 | 114,987.08 | 1.25 |
| Bruynseels | 803,398.00 | 803,398.00 | 0.00 | 303,169.06 | 3.29 |
| Cumpănașu | 559,174.91 | 559,174.91 | 0.00 | 365,473.80 | 3.96 |
| :ro:Cataramă|Cataramă | 1,300,000.00 | 1,300,000.00 | 0.00 | 2,452,830.19 | 26.71 |
| :ro:Bogdan Stanoevici|Stanoevici | 20,000.00 | 20,000.00 | 0.00 | 47,619.05 | 0.51 |
| Ivan | 14,400.00 | 14,400.00 | 0.00 | 40,000.00 | 0.44 |
| :ro:Ninel Peia|Peia | 8,000.00 | 8,000.00 | 0.00 | 23,529.41 | 0.26 |
| Popescu | 0.00 | 0.00 | 0.00 | 0.00 | 0.00 |
| :ro:John Ion Banu|Banu | 85,000.00 | 85,000.00 | 0.00 | 283,333.33 | 3.06 |
| Total | 70,258,904.02 | 34,955,696.02 | 35,303,208.00 | 702,589.04 | 7.62 |
Second round
For the second round, the two remaining candidates have raised a total of 1,956,000 lei.| Candidate | Total raised | Private funding | Public funding | Efficiency | Efficiency |
| Iohannis | 400,000.00 | 0.00 | 400,000.00 | 6,052.35 | 0.06 |
| Dăncilă | 1,556,000.00 | 1,456,800.00 | 99,200.00 | 45,886.17 | 0.47 |
| Total | 1,956,000.00 | 1,456,800.00 | 499,200.00 | 19,560.00 | 0.20 |
Debates
In order for a debate to be counted, there must be at least two candidates present. Situation such as: one candidate with one or multiple interviewers; one candidate with a representative of other candidate; only representatives of candidates ; one candidate debating a previously recorded video of other candidate; short live statements of a candidate inserted during a show with only one candidate; short coincidental encounters of candidates that spoke to each other are not to be considered proper debates. Any debate must be publicly broadcast. Negotiations behind closed doors, "strategic meetings" among candidates or any other type of discreet talks are not proper debates, even if their content was released to the public, even if the candidates approved its release.Debates may be broadcast on radio, television or internet. Candidates may show up in person or participate to the debate via telephone or video streaming for the entire debate time. Candidates that left the debate before 10% of the debate time elapsed are to be considered as absentees and their leaving noted as such. In this particular situation, the debate is considered a valid one, because at least two candidates were present at its beginning. Candidates that left before the debate's ending are considered present, with their particular situation noted as such.
Schedule
Participation
The following is a table of participating candidates in each debate:Results
The first round of voting was held on 10 November 2019. Incumbent president Klaus Iohannis, of the ruling National Liberal Party led the field with 37.8 percent, with former prime-minister Viorica Dăncilă, of the opposition Social Democratic Party finishing second with 22.26 percent. Because no candidate obtained the support of more than 50% of registered voters, the second round was held two weeks later, on 24 November 2019, between Ioannis and Dăncilă. Exit polls on election night showed Iohannis winning handily. He ultimately finished with 66.09 percent of the vote, the second-highest vote share for a winning presidential candidate in direct elections.Dan Barna openly endorsed Klaus Iohannis in the second round. Theodor Paleologu positioned himself as against Viorica Dăncilă, without openly endorsing Klaus Iohannis. Kelemen Hunor openly endorsed Klaus Iohannis in the second round. Alexandru Cumpănașu positioned himself against Viorica Dăncilă, without openly endorsing Klaus Iohannis.
By county
First round
- Source:
Second round
- Source:
Opinion polls