Romania’s president nominates MEP and advisor Eugen Tomac as PM in bid to end deadlock

BUCHAREST, Romania (AP) — Romania’s President Nicusor Dan nominated one of his advisors to be prime minister on Thursday as he seeks to end a political crisis after the previous coalition collapsed last month.

Dan nominated 44-year-old Eugen Tomac, who is also a member of the European Parliament, to try to form a government after weeks of deliberations and political deadlock in the European Union-member country. The nomination will need to be approved by lawmakers.

Dan said he chose Tomac because he has “independence, experience and values” that make him suitable for the role.

Speaking at the presidential Cotroceni Palace, in Bucharest, Dan said: “I chose a person independent of the parties in Parliament, who has the political experience to discuss with each of the parties, because consensus from many parties is needed on many issues. It is an act of responsibility on my part, and I expect the same responsibility from the political parties.”

Tomac said in a statement at the palace that he understands Romania is facing a difficult moment both politically and economically and that he will present to Parliament “a team of specialists, a technical government, not a political one.”

“I understand the political stakes,” he said. “They are legitimate and natural in a democratic state, but I know that Romania now needs national projects carried through to the end and clear objectives.”

Tomac’s nomination comes a month after a no-confidence vote toppled Prime Minister Ilie Bolojan, after a motion was submitted by the Social Democratic Party, or PSD, which was a part of the coalition, and the nationalist opposition Alliance for the Unity of Romanians party.

In his role as an MEP, Tomac sits with Renew Europe, a pro-EU liberal group. From 2012 to 2019 he served as a member of Romania’s parliament. He was appointed as a presidential adviser by Dan last year.

Tomac said his ambition for Romania is aligned with Dan’s vision “of belonging to the European family, of strengthening the strategic partnership with the United States, of our transatlantic relationship as a whole, our relevance in NATO being a priority.”

He added: “Economic competitiveness is very important, because only a strong economy can support the well-being that the citizens of Romania deserve.”

Romania has one of the highest budget deficits in the EU, with rampant inflation and a technical recession. When the coalition came to power in June 2025, it made reducing the budget deficit a priority. Bolojan was sworn in with the aim of ending one of Romania’s worst political crises in its post-communist history.

Tomac sits on the European Parliament’s culture and education committee and has been part of delegations supporting Moldova’s path towards EU membership. He is also the leader of the People’s Movement Party, a small pro-European, center-right Romanian political party that describes itself as Christian democratic and classically liberal.

Cristian Andrei, a Bucharest-based political consultant, says Dan’s nomination indicates the next cabinet will likely contain “neutral ministers, experts from the state apparatus and from big business, but with a negotiated support from the political parties.”

“The extent to which the large political parties will be involved at lower levels of the cabinet will determine how long this experiment will last,” Andrei added. “The president will enter the stage as a direct facilitator of a cabinet and will negotiate every political deal through a low-profile prime minister.”

The previous coalition was made up of the PSD, the National Liberal Party, the reformist Save Romania Union party, and the small ethnic Hungarian UDMR party, with the support of national minorities.

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McGrath reported from Leamington Spa, England.