November 16, 2025
A roundup of domestic and international news
Newsroom, 16.11.2025, 13:55
Elections. The Municipal Electoral Office has so far accepted six candidacies for the Bucharest City Hall elections. These are the candidacies submitted by Cătălin Drulă (Save Romania Union), Ciprian Ciucu (National Liberal Party), Anca Alexandrescu (Justice for Bucharest Electoral Alliance), George Valentin Burcea (Young People’s Party), Daniel Băluţă (Social Democratic Party), and Virgil Alexandru Zidaru (independent). Monday is the last day on which candidates can register with the Municipal Electoral Office. The election campaign will begin on November 22, and the elections for the future mayor of Bucharest will take place on December 7. According to the latest poll published by CURS, the Social Democratic candidate for the Bucharest City Hall, Daniel Băluţă, is in first place in the preferences of Bucharest residents, with 27%, followed by the Liberal Ciprian Ciucu and Cătălin Drulă from the Save Romania Union, with 22% each. The position of mayor of the capital remained vacant following the presidential election victory of former mayor Nicuşor Dan.
Measures. Next week, the third package of fiscal and budgetary measures aimed at restructuring public administration will be presented, Prime Minister Ilie Bolojan has announced. The legislative act will be adopted through the government’s commitment, and the reduction of personnel in the territory will be done gradually. Development Minister Cseke Attila said that the layoffs will take place following competitions. Approximately 13,000 employees are expected to leave local government, and 700 municipalities will not be affected. The estimated financial impact of the reform could reach 4.5 billion lei (approximately 900 million euros), including the reduction in salary expenses in the central administration. The austerity measures come at a time when Romania is facing a very large budget deficit.
Energy. Romania could have an additional 2,200 MW of power by the end of next year, after the Mintia and Iernut power plants become operational, as well as storage capacity of nearly 2,000 MW, Energy Minister Bogdan Ivan said. He added that work is underway on a mechanism to bring the price of energy for domestic consumers as close as possible to 1.10 lei per KWh (about 22 euro cents). In Bogdan Ivan’s opinion, the high energy prices in Romania are caused by the lack of regional interconnections and the reduction of already insufficient traditional production capacities. The minister also said that in the medium term, Romania aims to reach a total production capacity of 12,000 MW, combining nuclear, hydro, and gas sources to ensure a diversified and stable energy mix.
Corruption. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky has announced an immediate inspection of Ukraine’s energy system, which is embroiled in a corruption scandal. A wave of anger has swept the country after the Ukrainian Anti-Corruption Bureau announced that it was investigating massive embezzlement committed within the system by a close associate of the Ukrainian head of state, Timur Mindich. Anti-corruption prosecutors found that $100 million had been embezzled through illegal commission schemes, and Volodymyr Zelensky called for the restructuring of energy companies and ordered ministers to cooperate with anti-corruption agencies in the investigation. The Ukrainian energy sector has been severely affected in recent days by a campaign of Russian drone and missile strikes, which has plunged much of Ukraine into darkness, international news agencies report.
Football. Romania, which lost 3-1 to Bosnia-Herzegovina, on Saturday evening, away from home, will finish third in the 2026 World Cup qualifiers. The Romanian footballers will play San Marino in Ploieşti (south) on Tuesday in their last group match, while Austria and Bosnia-Herzegovina will battle it out in a match with qualification at stake. In March, Romania will participate in the play-offs for qualification for the 2026 World Cup, thanks to winning their Nations League group. (MI)
