Romania’s President Klaus Iohannis steps down amidst impeachment efforts and a presidential election crisis, plunging the country into institutional chaos.
Romania Plunged into Institutional Chaos Amid Presidential Election Crisis
Romania’s outgoing centrist president, ‘To spare Romania this pointless and negative crisis… I am resigning from the president’s office,’ Klaus Iohannis, has resigned from office amid plans by hard-right parliamentary parties to have him impeached. The move comes as the country prepares for a re-run of its presidential election on May 4 and May 18.
Romania's presidential election crisis began in December 2019, when incumbent President Klaus Iohannis was re-elected for a second term.
However, the election was marred by controversy surrounding 'vote rigging' and 'electoral manipulation'.
An estimated 20% of votes were disputed due to irregularities in the voting process.
The opposition party, Save Romania Union (USR), filed complaints with the Constitutional Court, alleging widespread 'fraud'.
The crisis led to mass protests across the country, calling for electoral reform and greater transparency.
The crisis began last year when ‘a little-known far-right candidate who criticized NATO’ , Calin Georgescu, won the first round of the election. Accusations of Russian interference followed, but Moscow denied any involvement. In response, Romania’s top court voided the entire election, paving the way for a re-run.
Initially, President Iohannis was set to stay on until his successor was elected, with his second and last term expiring on December 21. However, in January, three far-right opposition parties filed a motion to impeach him, which is now up for a vote. Analysts have warned that some lawmakers from mainstream pro-European parties may support the impeachment effort, giving it the required majority.
President Iohannis’ Decision to Resign
In response to the impeachment motion, President Iohannis announced his resignation from office, citing the potential consequences of the crisis both domestically and abroad. ‘To spare Romania this pointless and negative crisis… I am resigning from the president’s office,’ he told reporters.
Klaus Iohannis is a Romanian politician and academic who served as the 5th President of Romania from 2014 to 2019.
Born on June 13, 1959, in Sibiu, Romania, he was the country's first non-Romanian president.
A member of the German minority in Romania, Iohannis rose to prominence as a mayor of Sibiu and later became the President of the Social Democratic Party of Romania.
He was elected President in 2014 with over 50% of the vote.
Senate speaker Ilie Bolojan will take over as interim president with limited powers until the election. The three hard-right groupings behind the impeachment effort had used their campaign against President Iohannis as a reason to stage protests and seize the political agenda, further exacerbating the crisis in Romania.
