Sibiu mayor in the race for Liberal Party helm while Romania's liberals and democrat liberals negotiate alliance

Soon after National Liberal Party (PNL) leader Crin Antonescu announced his resignation on the poor results of the European Parliament elections, a candidate aiming to take his seat was announced. The mayor of Sibiu Klaus Iohannis will run for presidency of the PNL in the party's national congress which will take place within a month. Pundits believe Iohannis might also be the party's candidate in the country's presidential elections this fall. In the meantime, the liberals are already negotiating with the Democrat Liberal Party (PDL) in order to form a large rightist alliance which would compete against the Social Democratic Party (PSD) in the presidential elections this November. Iohannis, who was prime vice-president of the PNL prior to the elections for the European Parliament last Sunday, resigned together with the rest of the party’s leadership, including Crin Antonescu, who was the party’s leader and first option for the presidential elections. This came after PNL got a low score in the elections, of just 15 percent of the votes. Antonescu previously said that if the party got under 20 percent he would resign. PNL’s low score can be partially explained, as some of the party’s supporters rallied behind actor Mircea Diaconu, who had been excluded from PNL and chose to run as an independent. Diaconu got almost 7 percent of the total votes. After the PNL leaders resigned in the beginning of this week, the party now needs to decide the date for a national congress in which its members will elect a new leadership. Johannis, who was brought to the PNL and promoted as its number two leader by Crin Antonescu himself, is one of the main political adversaries of PSD and of prime-minister Victor Ponta. It was his naming by PNL for the position of deputy prime-minister which led to the end of the Social Liberal Union (USL) between PNL and PSD, in February this year. Iohannis is considered to be a strong candidate for the presidential elections. But first, he must defeat the opposition within his own party, which is rallied behind former prime-minister Calin Popescu Tariceanu, who was expelled from the party because he didn’t agree with PNL leaving the Government in February. Tariceanu still hopes to bring PNL back in the alliance with PSD. Prime Minister Victor Ponta said even after the elections last Sunday, which saw PSD gaining 37 percent of the votes, that he was willing to cooperate with the liberals again. However, PNL’s acting president Crin Antonescu firmly refused any negotiations. Moreover, the liberals announced that ithey will join the European People’s Party (EPP) group in the European Parliament, which is the main adversary of the Socialist & Democrat (S&D) group, where PSD is a member. In the last two days, the liberals started negotiations with other rightist parties in Romania. The Democrat Liberal Party (PDL) leader Vasile Blaga said he was negotiating with he PNL and that he thinks the two parties should agree easily on a potential governing program for 2016. Other rightist parties may also join in. If achieved, this would be a remake of the alliance Dreptate si Adevar (DA) which won the elections back in 2005 and which propelled Traian Basescu to presidency. The two parties may also decide to support a single candidate for the presidential elections. PDL’s proposal is former justice minister Catalin Predoiu, a former PNL member, who is now first vice-president of the democratic liberal party.