PSD's Ciolacu on local election postponement: It is an option

Interim Social Democratic Party (PSD) Chairman Marcel Ciolacu said on Thursday evening that postponing the local election is "an option."

Asked on B1TV private television broadcaster if he believed the local election should be postponed, Ciolacu said: "We'll see how things go. We have seen what happened in France. It was a fiasco to force the local election in this context, the second round was cancelled in France. I believe we still have time to discuss these things, to see which way things are going... Postponing local election is an option."

Pro Romania Chairman Victor Ponta said on Tuesday that the local election scheduled for June in Romania must be postponed until September.

"The war against the coronavirus epidemic is all that matters now/the care for the people directly and indirectly affected/the measures to ensure the health, pension, salary, education services - in this crisis period! The local elections scheduled for June in Romania must be postponed until September, now there is no time for political battles and election campaigns - everything must be about the War against the coronavirus Epidemic - and about measures against the economic crisis!," Ponta wrote on Facebook.

The Hungarian Democratic Union of Romania (UDMR) believes local election should be postponed by 6 months, in the context in which the priority of the moment is protecting the health of the population and reduce the effects generated by the COVID-19 epidemic, Union Chairman Kelemen Hunor told AGERPRES on Wednesday.

"The number one priority must remain the health system of people and the attempt to slow down the spread of the virus, so we don't put too much pressure on the health system, on the state institutions. There is nothing left by respect the indications of specialists and the authorities' decisions. This is the number one priority. After that, the economy - what we do with the SMEs, because that is where the base is, and how fast the Government must come up with some measures and after that we can also think about the local election, but not in June," the UDMR leader argued.

In his opinion, according to the forecasts made by specialists, statistical models, but particularly to the development of the situation in various countries in the world, "there is no chance to have local election in decent, normal conditions."

"That is why, in our point of view, a postponement of up to 6 months is a reasonable solution, somewhere at the end of September - beginning of October these elections will be organised, not at the same time with the parliamentary elections, of course. An organic law is also needed, as provided in the Administrative Code," Kelemen Hunor added.

Leader of UDMR senators Cseke Attila also said that the Union MPs endorse such a draft law that could be "swiftly passed" through Parliament and he believes the local election topic must be taken out of any public debate.