Klaus Iohannis is the first head of state in Romanian history to leave the presidency early. The background to this is the threat of impeachment, pushed through parliament by three far-right parties - the "Alliance for the Unity of Romanians" (AUR), the "Party of Young People (POT) and "SOS Romania". And after a liberal party joined their chorus, Iohannis' premature dismissal was only a matter of days, writes the German public broadcaster ARD.
His decision to resign himself was practically ahead of events: Iohannis announced that on February 12 he would vacate the presidency "in order to save Romania and its citizens from this crisis and from this unnecessary and negative development".
Serious irregularities in the presidential election
Iohannis' mandate was supposed to end in December, when it was supposed to become clear who the new president would be. But things turned out differently: right-wing candidate Calin Georgescu surprisingly won the first round of the election, but after the secret services found evidence of Russian influence during the election campaign, the Romanian Constitutional Court annulled the election. New elections were scheduled for May this year.
„The Absent President“
In recent years, Iohannis's rating has fallen sharply. Romanians had high hopes for the reforms they associated with his election to the presidency - especially in the areas of justice, education and the secret services, ARD recalls in this regard. However, the reforms did not materialize. In addition, Iohannis was perceived as closed and distant, and the Romanian media commented that now an „absent president“, who is always on vacation or „sleeping“, is resigning.
In the end, the liberal party „Union for the Salvation of Romania“ (USR) also supported the proposal of the far-right in parliament. Their candidate Elena Lasconi came in second place in the annulled elections and had to stand in a run-off with Georgescu.
Positive reactions to the resignation
Iohannis' resignation is being viewed almost entirely in a positive light, ARD further notes. The presidential candidate of the National Liberal Party (formerly of Iohannis) called the resignation a "wise decision", while the right-wingers consider it a victory on points for themselves and hope to defeat one of the right-wing candidates in May. It remains to be seen whether Calin Georgescu will be allowed to run again in the elections. He announced that otherwise he would support another far-right candidate in the hope that he would in return appoint him prime minister after winning the elections.
This could be the end of Romania's clear ties with the West, the German publication also commented. Iohannis already sees that his country's reputation abroad is in danger: "Absolutely none of our partners will understand why Romania is expelling its president, even though the process of electing a new president has already begun. We are practically becoming a laughing stock for the world," ARD quotes Iohannis as worrying.