Sorin Oprescu

Dr.
Sorin Oprescu
Mayor of Bucharest
In office
19 June 2008 – 15 September 2015
Preceded by Adriean Videanu
Succeeded by Marin Ștefănel Dan (interim)
Personal details
Born November 7, 1951
Bucharest, Romania
Nationality Romanian
Political party Independent
Other political
affiliations		 PSD (1990-2008)

Sorin Mircea Oprescu (Romanian pronunciation: [soˈrin oˈpresku]; born November 7, 1951 in Bucharest) is a Romanian independent politician and medical doctor who was Mayor of Bucharest between 2008 and 2015.

Political activity

Oprescu first ran for Mayor of Bucharest in 1998 backed by the Party of Social Democracy in Romania (PDSR), the precursor to the modern-day Social Democratic Party (PSD). He was eliminated in the first round with 19.3% of the vote, losing to incumbent Viorel Lis.[1] He ran again in 2000, achieving the highest first-round total (50.12%)[2] but losing in the second round with 49.31% to winner Traian Basescu's 50.69%.[3]

He was one of the independent candidates running for president of Romania in the presidential elections which took place on the 22nd of November 2009. He was eliminated in the first round with 3.18% of the vote (5th place), and was involved in a notable Condorcet cycle with Mircea Geoana and eventual winner Traian Basescu.[4]

He was a senator representing the Social Democratic Party (PSD) between 2000 and April 2008, serving as the vice-president of the Senate Committee for Public Health. Oprescu resigned from the Senate on 24 June 2008.[5]

In February 2006, Oprescu also became the president of the Social Democratic Party's Bucharest branch, a position from which he stepped down upon quitting the party in April 2008.

In 2008, after the Social Democratic Party refused to nominate him to the mayoral elections, he ran as an independent candidate. He earned the most votes in the first round of the elections. In the second round against the Democratic-Liberal Party (PDL) candidate Vasile Blaga, with the support of the Liberals and Social-Democrats (who announced they would support anyone who ran against the Democratic-Liberals), he won with 56.55% of the vote.[6] Nevertheless, the Social-Democrat mayor of Bucharest's Sector 2, Neculai Onţanu, announced he supported Blaga,[7] while the Social-Democrat mayor of Sector 5, Marian Vanghelie, announced he would not support Oprescu and accused him of being a "cheap demagogue".[8]

Conviction

In September 2015, he was arrested on charges of corruption.[9] On 15 September 2015, being deposed by Bucharest's Prefect upon a courts' decision to maintain Oprescu's arrest, an interim successor was elected from one of the city's deputy-mayors.[10]

Election results for Mayor of Bucharest

Year First round Second round Result
1998 111,759 (19.3%)[11] failed to qualify lost to Viorel Lis
2000 260,689 (41.16%)[12] 353,038 (49.31%)[13] lost to Traian Băsescu
2008 164,219 (30.12%)[14] 315,981 (56.55%)[15] won against Vasile Blaga

References

  1. ↑ "Toamna se numara voturile > EVZ.ro". 2012-08-19. Archived from the original on August 19, 2012. Retrieved 2016-02-13.
  2. ↑ "Our Campaigns - Bucharest Mayor Race - Jun 04, 2000". www.ourcampaigns.com. Retrieved 2016-02-13.
  3. ↑ "Our Campaigns - Bucharest Mayor Race - Jun 18, 2000". www.ourcampaigns.com. Retrieved 2016-02-13.
  4. ↑ "RangeVoting.org - The Romanian 2009 presidential election featured Condorcet cycles". rangevoting.org. Retrieved 2016-02-13.
  5. ↑ "Sorin Oprescu a demisionat din Parlament", Gândul 23 June 2008
  6. ↑ "Alianţe electorale ale partidelor împotriva PD-L", BBC Romanian, 3 June 2008
  7. ↑ "Onţanu îl sprijină pe Blaga!", Evenimentul Zilei, 3 June 2008
  8. ↑ "Vanghelie: „Oprescu e un demagog ieftin“", Evenimentul Zilei, 5 June 2008
  9. ↑ "Romania corruption: Bucharest mayor arrested", BBC, 6 September 2015, retrieved 7 September 2015
  10. ↑
  11. ↑ "Toamna se numara voturile", Evenimentul Zilei, 28 October 1998
  12. ↑ "Rezultatele finale ale primului tur de scrutin in Bucuresti", Ziua, 9 June 2000
  13. ↑ "Basescu a venit la Primarie", Ziua, 20 June 2000
  14. ↑ Biroul Electoral Central, Rezultate, alegerea primarului general
  15. ↑ "BEM: Sorin Oprescu a fost declarat primar general al Capitalei", Evenimentul Zilei, 17 June 2008
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