Romanian president picks Liberal former mayor as PM to form new government

Adrian Vestea nominated as prime minister after previous choice, Eugen Tomac, withdraws.Romanian President Nicusor Dan has nominated Adrian Vestea, a National Liberal Party member and former mayor, as prime minister to form a new government after the previous choice for the post withdrew.“Eugen Tomac withdrew his mandate this morning and as such ‌I nominate Adrian Vestea as prime minister,” Dan, a centrist, said in a post on X on Sunday.Recommended Stories list of 3 itemslist 1 of 3Romanians mount mass protests over judicial corruptionlist 2 of 3Romania to expel Russian consul after residential drone strikelist 3 of 3Romania’s pro-European parties agree to form coalition governmentend of listVestea, 52, ⁠is the county council president of the central Romanian county of Brasov. Eugen Tomac had ⁠been seeking to lead a government of technocrats but lacked support from the parties in parliament.Vestea, who served as a development minister from 2023 to 2024, said in a statement that he wants a “political government that will undertake real reforms and keep Romania on a pro-Western path”.“We are the sixth largest country in Europe, and we need to put a major emphasis on development. Which I will do from day one,” he said.Dan’s two nominations for the prime ministerial role this month come after a no-confidence vote toppled former Prime Minister Ilie Bolojan in May. A general election is not scheduled until 2028.Dan said Vestea was suitable for the role because he had “gone through all the administrative stages” throughout his political career.“He was a successful mayor, a successful county council president, a successful minister, and he attracted European funds, being focused on development, for example the Brasov airport, which is a success,” Dan said.Parliamentary parties have previously said a minority government, whose members do not hold a ⁠majority of the seats in parliament, would be better ⁠than a government of technocrats.