Premium
Bucharest General Mayor and Social Democratic Party (PSD) deputy chairperson Gabriela Firea said on Tuesday after the meeting of the PSD National Standing Bureau that she withdrew from the internal race for the nomination of the presidential candidate when she saw the opinions of the organization leaders, announcing that she will back Prime Minister Viorica Dancila in the electoral campaign.
"As I have said at the beginning of the Standing Bureau and the CEx [National Executive Committee] meeting, I think and it seems normal for me as part of a democratic party where there is freedom of speech and where we are all tolerant with our colleagues' opinions - I participated in a preliminary competition for the designation of PSD's candidate at the presidential election. There were several of us in this preliminary race, myself included. I came before my colleagues in the Standing Bureau and asked for their opinion and, given that in my case, the critical mass of support has not been created because most of my colleagues believe that the party chairperson must be the one who represents us in this race, it seemed normal to announce in front of my colleagues in the Standing Bureau that their opinion is important to me and that I withdraw from this race, which had a predictable outcome anyway," Firea said.
She added that she will support Viorica Dancila.
"Yes, and I think it is normal that, starting today, at the end of this preliminary competition, we should put an end to this debate and every colleague should campaign and support the candidate of this political formation. If we do not agree it means we position ourselves outside the party and no one is holding anyone by force," added Gabriela Firea.
