Parliamentarians in Romania voted on Tuesday to remove Prime Minister Ilie Bolojan from office.
The motion passed with 281 votes in favor across the 464 seats of the two houses of parliament, well above the 233 votes required for a supermajority.
The result injects uncertainty into the debt‑burdened EU member, which has long struggled to meet the economic criteria to join the eurozone. Romania has been subject to EU excessive deficit procedures since 2020; in the last quarter of 2025 the public deficit reached 7.9% of GDP, above the EU limit of 3%.
A rainbow coalition formed last year after President Nicusor Dan won the May 2025 rerun of the presidential election. Dan named Bolojan prime minister in June after a deal between four parties: Bolojan’s centre‑right National Liberal Party (PNL), the Social Democrats (PSD) — the largest bloc with 93 seats — and two other pro‑EU parties.
The government’s need to cut spending to meet European debt targets proved unpopular with the PSD. Last month the PSD left the coalition and, together with far‑right opposition parties, filed the no‑confidence motion. More lawmakers voted to oust Bolojan than had supported tabling the motion earlier.
In the debate before the vote Bolojan called the motion “cynical and artificial,” saying it ignored the context facing the country and that he had taken office aware of the pressure and the need to do “what was urgent and necessary for our country.”
George Simion, leader of the AUR far‑right party, celebrated the outcome online, saying the government had been “ousted by the Romanian Parliament” and accusing the so‑called pro‑Europeans of delivering “taxes, war, and poverty.” PSD leader Sorin Grindeanu said his party was open to finding a quick solution: “let’s have a government quickly” and “all options are open.” He said Bolojan should resign, given the overwhelming vote, and denied the PSD sought an alliance with the far right beyond their shared goal of removing the prime minister.
What happens next is uncertain. Bolojan is expected to lose the premiership and coalition negotiations are likely to follow. Those talks could, in theory, recreate the previous four‑party alliance — since all four are needed for a stable majority — or produce a different arrangement and possibly a new prime minister from another party in the alliance.
President Nicusor Dan, speaking to reporters and European leaders in Armenia before the vote, said he would work to maintain stability and fiscal discipline: “Political discussions will be difficult, but it is my responsibility as president — and that of the political parties — to steer Romania in the right direction,” he said, urging markets to remain calm and reiterating Romania’s commitment to deficit targets.
Romania’s currency, the leu, has weakened slightly against the euro amid the uncertainty. Bucharest still plans to join the eurozone but does not yet meet the required economic conditions.
Edited by: Roshni Majumdar, Alex Berry
