Ilie-Gavril Bolojan (; born 17 March 1969) is a Romanian politician serving as the

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 of Romania, Standing Bureau of the Senate, and the first pe ...

. He previously served as the acting

president of Romania The president of Romania () is the head of state of Romania. The president is directly elected by a two-round system, and, following a modification to the Romanian Constitution in 2003, serves for five years. An individual may serve two ter ...

from February 2025, following the resignation of

Klaus Iohannis Klaus Werner Iohannis (; ; born 13 June 1959) is a Romanian politician, physicist, and former teacher who served as the fifth president of Romania from 2014 until his resignation in 2025. Prior to entering Politics of Romania, national politics, ...

, until May 2025 when

Nicușor Dan Nicușor Daniel Dan (; born 20 December 1969) is a Romanian politician, mathematician, and civic activist serving as the sixth president of Romania since 2025. He previously served as the mayor of Bucharest from 2020 to 2025 and as a member of ...

became President, the mayor of

Oradea Oradea (, , ; ; ) is a city in Romania, located in the Crișana region. It serves as the administrative county seat, seat of Bihor County and an economic, social, and cultural hub in northwestern Romania. The city lies between rolling hills on ...

, and the president of the Bihor County Council. Following the National Liberal Party's defeat in the first round of the now-annulled 2024 Romanian presidential election, and the subsequent resignation of Nicolae Ciucă, Bolojan became the party's acting president and was elected

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 of Romania, Standing Bureau of the Senate, and the first pe ...

. On 12 February 2025, following the resignation of Klaus Iohannis, Bolojan became the acting president of Romania, serving until

's inauguration on 26 May 2025 following his victory in the 2025 Romanian presidential election. During his acting presidency, his term as president of the Senate was suspended and took office again after Dan's presidency began.

Early life

Ilie-Gavril Bolojan was born on 17 March 1969 in Vadu Crișului, a commune in Bihor

County A county () is a geographic region of a country used for administrative or other purposesL. Brookes (ed.) '' Chambers Dictionary''. Edinburgh: Chambers Harrap Publishers Ltd, 2005. in some nations. The term is derived from the Old French denoti ...

, in the

Socialist Republic of Romania The Socialist Republic of Romania (, RSR) was a Marxism–Leninism, Marxist–Leninist One-party state, one-party socialist state that existed officially in Romania from 1947 to 1989 (see Revolutions of 1989). From 1947 to 1965, the state was ...

. He is unrelated to , a high-ranking Communist politician ( Central Committee member 1969–1979) and diplomat. Bolojan graduated from the Emanuil Gojdu Mathematics-Physics High School in Oradea and studied mechanics (1988–1993) at the Traian Vuia Polytechnic Institute in

Timișoara Timișoara (, , ; , also or ; ; ; see #Etymology, other names) is the capital city of Timiș County, Banat, and the main economic, social and cultural center in Western Romania. Located on the Bega (Tisza), Bega River, Timișoara is consider ...

and mathematics (1990–1993) at the West University of Timișoara. He became a member of the National Liberal Party (PNL) in 1993. During 1993–1994, he was a teacher at the Tileagd Auxiliary School.

Political career

Beginnings (1996–2008)

Between 1996 and 2004, Ilie Bolojan was a local councilor of the town of Aleșd, and from 2004 a member of the Bihor County Council. In 2005 and 2006, he attended specialisation courses in public administration in France and at the National Institute of Administration in

Bucharest Bucharest ( , ; ) is the capital and largest city of Romania. The metropolis stands on the River Dâmbovița (river), Dâmbovița in south-eastern Romania. Its population is officially estimated at 1.76 million residents within a greater Buc ...

. In the period 2005–2007, he was commissioner ('prefect') of

Bihor County Bihor County (, ) is a county (județ) in western Romania. With a total area of , Bihor is Romania's 6th largest county geographically and the main county in the historical region of Crișana. Its capital city is Oradea (Nagyvárad). Toponymy ...

, and in the period 2007–2008 he held the position of secretary general of the Government.

Mayor of Oradea (2008–2020)

In 2008, Bolojan was elected mayor of the municipality of Oradea with 50.3% of the votes, becoming the first mayor of the city elected in the first round after 1989. He started a program of administrative and economic reforms, modernising the infrastructure, rehabilitating the historic center and attracting investors, thus Oradea became more attractive from an economic and tourist point of view. In 2012 and 2016, Bolojan was re-elected mayor, and in 2016 he obtained 70.95% of the votes.

President of the Bihor County Council (2020–2024)

In 2020, Bolojan was elected president of the Bihor County Council with 61.5% of the votes. He continued to promote infrastructural development and investment attraction projects for the county, improving public services and creating a more efficient and transparent administrative system.

President of the Senate (2024–2025)

Following the December 2024 parliamentary elections, Bolojan became a member of the Romanian Senate, and on 23 December 2024, he was chosen as the

Acting presidency (February–May 2025)

Securing Our Future London Summit participants on 2 March 2025

Following the resignation of

on 12 February 2025, Bolojan became acting president in accordance with the presidential succession laws. During the handover ceremony, Iohannis greeted Bolojan at

Cotroceni Palace Cotroceni Palace (Romanian language, Romanian: ''Palatul Cotroceni'') is the official residence of the President of Romania. It is located at ''Bulevardul Geniului, nr. 1'', in Bucharest, Romania. The palace also houses the National Cotroceni Mu ...

and held a brief meeting. He served until 26 May 2025 when

presidency A presidency is an administration or the executive, the collective administrative and governmental entity that exists around an office of president of a state or nation. Although often the executive branch of government, and often personified b ...

began following his victory in the 2025 Romanian presidential election.

Premiership (2025–present)

On 16 June, Dan hinted that he would appoint Bolojan prime minister later that week, with a deal with the PSD confirmed on the following day in which Bolojan would be appointed prime minister on 18 June, having to leave office for a PSD member in 2027.

Notes

References

, - , - {{DEFAULTSORT:Bolojan, Ilie Living people 1969 births People from Bihor County Presidents of the Senate of Romania National Liberal Party (Romania) politicians Mayors of Oradea West University of Timișoara alumni Politehnica University of Timișoara alumni Acting presidents of Romania Emanuil Gojdu National College alumni 21st-century Romanian politicians

External links

Official website