President of the Senate of Romania

The president of the Senate of Romania is the senator elected to preside over the Senate meetings. The president of the Senate is also the president of the Standing Bureau of the Senate, and the first person in the presidential line of succession.

Election The president of the Senate is elected by secret ballot with the majority of votes from the senators. If none of the candidates obtains the necessary votes, the first two compete again, and the one with most of the votes wins.

Role

Calls the Senate in session (ordinary or extraordinary); Presides the Senate meetings, assisted by two secretaries; Represents the Senate in the relation with the President, the Chamber of Deputies, the Government, Constitutional Court Represents the Senate in the foreign relations; Succeeds (ad interim) the president if the latter resigns, is suspended, incapacitated or dies in office. (They continue to be president of the Senate during the ad-interim presidency of the country. They act as president until a new president is elected.)

History

1864–1866 Between 3 July 1864 and 1 June 1866 the Upper House of the Legislative was called Corpul Ponderator. Members were nominated by the domnitor, based on the proposals of the counties.

1866–1946 The upper house was called Senat or Camera Senatului. Most of the Senators were elected, some were senators by right (senatori de drept), as established by the 1866 Constitution. Voters and members had to be at least 40 years of age, except the heir to the throne, that was senator at 18 years, and allowed to vote in the Senate at 21.

1946–1989 In 1946 elections were called only for the Assembly of Deputies (Adunarea Deputaţilor), as the 1923 Constitution was re-empowered with some modifications (including the suspension of the Senate). After the overthrow of the king and the establishment of the communist republic, the upper house was dissolved and disbanded.

1990–present The upper house is called Senat and is headed by a president.

List of officeholders Ad interim (acting) officeholders are denoted by italics. The Rule of the Senate states that at the first standing of the house, the meeting is headed by the eldest senator and helped by the youngest senator. Those bear the title of Interim President of the Senate, and, as their term is very short (one or two days), they are not listed. The interim officeholders listed have hold the office in different circumstances and for a longer time (i.e. than one or two days).

They were actually Vice Presidents standing as caretaker President during a vacancy. The caretaker Vice Presidents during the two impeachments of Traian Băsescu in April–May 2007 (Doru Ioan Tărăcilă [ro]) and in June–July 2012 (Petru Filip) are also listed in the table below.

The political stance of presidents of the upper house prior to the development of a modern party system is given by the following key/legend:

C (Conservative) MC (Moderate Conservative) RL (Radical Liberal) ML (Moderate Liberal)

The political stance of presidents of the upper house after the development of a modern party system is given by the following key/legend:

PNL = National Liberal Party (historical)/(contemporary) PC = Conservative Party PNR = Romanian National Party PP = People's Party PCD = Conservative-Democratic Party PNȚ = National Peasants' Party PND = Democratic Nationalist Party PNC = National Christian Party FRN = National Renaissance Front(from 1940 PN; Party of the Nation) FP = Ploughmen's Front PMR = Romanian Workers' Party(from 1965 PCR; Romanian Communist Party) FSN = National Salvation Front PDSR = Party of Social Democracy in Romania(from 2001 PSD; Social Democratic Party) PNȚCD = Christian Democratic National Peasants' Party PSDR = Romanian Social Democratic Party PDL = Democratic Liberal Party(until 2008 PD; Democratic Party) USR PLUS/USR = Save Romania Union - Freedom, Unity and Solidarity Party/Save Romania Union Mil. = Military Ind. = Independent

# Name Portrait Birth–Death Took office Left office PartyCorpul Ponderator 1864–18661Metropolitan-primate Nifon Rusailă1789–18756 December 18641 June 1866Ind.Senate 1866–1947(1)Metropolitan-primate Nifon Rusailă1789–18751 June 18666 June 1868Ind.2Ştefan Golescu1809–18746 September 186815 November 1868RL3Nicolae Golescu1810–187718 November 18689 July 1869RL4Alexandru Plagino1821–18942 September 18694 March 1871MC(1)Metropolitan-primate Nifon Rusailă1789–18754 March 18715 May 1875Ind.5Metropolitan-primate Calinic Miclescu1822–18869 June 187525 March 1879Ind.6Constantin Bosianu1815–188229 May 187915 November 1879PNL 7Dimitrie Ghica1816–189717 November 18798 September 1888PNL 8Ioan Emanoil Florescu1819–18934 November 18887 December 1889PC9Nicolae Kretzulescu1812–190013 December 18899 June 1890PC(8)Ioan Emanoil Florescu1819–189317 November 189021 February 1891PC10Constantin Boerescu1836–19081 March 189111 December 1891PC11Gheorghe Grigore Cantacuzino1833–191325 February 189224 October 1895PC12Dimitrie Ghica1816–18979 December 189515 February 1897PNL 13Dimitrie Alexandru Sturdza1833–191420 February 189731 March 1897PNL 14Eugeniu Stătescu1836–190531 March 189718 November 1897PNL 15Nicolae Gane1838–191618 November 189721 April 1899PNL (10)Constantin Boerescu1836–190813 June 189914 February 1901PC(14)Eugeniu Stătescu1836–190524 March 190115 November 1902PNL 16Petre S. Aurelian1833–190916 November 190223 December 1904PNL (10)Constantin Boerescu1836–190825 February 190526 April 1907PC(16)Petre S. Aurelian1833–19099 June 190724 January 1909PNL 17Constantin Budișteanu1838–191128 January 190910 January 1911PNL (11)Gheorghe Grigore Cantacuzino1833–191310 March 191123 March 1913PC18Theodor Rosetti1837–193227 March 19133 July 1913PC19Ioan Lahovary1844–19153 July 191311 January 1914PC20Basile M. Missir1843–192921 February 19149 December 1916PNL 21Emanoil Porumbaru1845–19219 December 191625 April 1918PNL 22Dimitrie Dobrescu1852–19344 June 19185 November 1918PCP23Paul Bujor1862–195228 November 191926 March 1920PȚ24Constantin Coandă1857–193222 June 192022 January 1922PP25Mihail Pherekyde1842–192631 March 192224 January 1926PNL 26Constantin I. Nicolaescu1861–19453 February 192627 March 1926PNL (24)Constantin Coandă1857–193218 July 19265 June 1927PP27Constantin I. Nicolaescu1861–194518 July 192710 November 1928PNL 28Traian Bratu1875–194023 December 192830 April 1931PNȚ29Mihail Sadoveanu1880–196118 June 193110 June 1932Ind.30Neculai Costăchescu1876–19394 August 193218 November 1933PNȚ31Leonte Moldovan1865–194310 February 193415 November 1935PNL 32Constantin Dimitriu-Dovlecel1872–194515 November 193515 November 1936PNL 33Alexandru Lapedatu1876–195016 November 193620 March 1937PNL 34Nicolae Iorga1871–19409 June 193913 June 1939Ind.35Constantin Argetoianu1871–195515 June 19395 September 1940FNR/PNSenate since 199036Alexandru Bârlădeanu1911–199718 June 199016 October 1992FSN37Oliviu Gherman1930–202022 October 199222 November 1996FDSN/PDSR38Petre Roman1946–27 November 199622 December 1999PD39Mircea Ionescu-Quintus 1917–20174 February 200030 November 2000PNL40Nicolae Văcăroiu1943– 15 December 200030 November 2004PDSR/PSD19 December 200414 October 2008PSD— (acting)1951– 14 October 200828 October 2008PSD41Ilie Sârbu1950–28 October 200813 December 2008PSD42Mircea Geoană1958– 19 December 200823 November 2011PSD—Petru Filip (acting)1955–23 November 201128 November 2011PDL43Vasile Blaga1956–28 November 20113 July 2012PDL44Crin Antonescu1959– 3 July 201219 December 2012PNL19 December 20124 March 2014—Cristian Dumitrescu (acting)1955– 5 March 201410 March 2014PSD45Călin Popescu-Tăriceanu1952–10 March 201421 December 2016Ind./PLR/ALDE21 December 20162 September 2019ALDE—Șerban Valeca (acting)1956–2022 2 September 201910 September 2019PSD46Teodor Meleșcanu1941–10 September 20193 February 2020Ind. withPSD support—Titus Corlățean (acting)1968– 3 February 20209 April 2020PSD— (acting) 1971– 9 April 202021 December 2020PSD47 Anca Dragu 1972– 21 December 2020 23 November 2021 USR PLUS/USR48 Florin Cîțu 1972– 23 November 2021 29 June 2022 PNL— Alina Gorghiu (acting) 1978– 29 June 2022 13 June 2023 PNL49 Nicolae Ciucă 1967– 13 June 2023 23 December 2024 PNL50 Ilie Bolojan 1969– 23 December 2024 23 June 2025 PNL51 Mircea Abrudean 1984– 24 June 2025 Incumbent PNL

Notes

References