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Calin Popescu Tariceanu, elected chairman of the PLR
Calin Popescu Tariceanu was elected, on Saturday, chairman of the Liberal Reformist Party (PLR) following that party's Congress that took place over Friday and Saturday.
1180 delegates voted, of which 1167 voted for the Calin Popescu Tariceanu, the rest of the votes being annulled.
Tariceanu was the only candidate running for the position.
Furthermore, the 19 PLR deputy chairmen were elected through secret vote by the congress, 19 persons running for the posts.
They are: Daniel Barbu, Catalin Beciu, Radu Boroianu, deputy Steluta Cataniciu, senator Petru Ehegartner, deputy Gratiela Gavrilescu, Andrei Gerea, deputy Guran Virgil, senator Sorin Iliesiu, deputy Nicu Marcu, Marius Mateescu, senator Nasta Nicolae, deputy Ion Pargaru, Paun Dan, Ovidiu Szilagi, Mihai Stanisoara, Radu Stroe, Jan Tucan, and Ioan Utiu.
For the post of member of the Central Political Bureau 36 candidacies were filed. The first 27 after the vote will be rightful members, while the rest are to become substitute members.
PLR is a political project resulting from the partnership between the Initiative Group for Keeping the Liberal Identity, founded by chairman of the Senate Calin Popescu Tariceanu, and the National Environment Party.
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Calin Constantin Anton Popescu-Tariceanu was born in Bucharest on January 14, 1952.
He holds a B. Eng. of the Water Engineering Faculty of the Bucharest Construction Institute. In 1982 he gained a Master of Science degree after finishing postgraduate courses in informatics and mathematics for research. In 1980-1991, he was an assistant professor at the Water Engineering Faculty of the Bucharest Construction Institute.
In 1976-1977, he worked as an engineer with the National Waters Administration, the Arges branch; in 1977-1979 he worked as an engineer with the Bucharest Industrial Construction Corporation.
In 1990, he founded the first commercial radio station in Romania called Radio Contact, which general manager he was 1992-1996.
1994-1997 and 2001-2003 he was an associate partner of Automotive Trading Services, the local official importer of Citroen, having also been a founding member and chairman of the Association of Romania's Carmakers and Importers (APIA). Since 2003 he is an honorary chairman of the Association of Romania's Carmakers and Importers.
He is a shareholder in various companies, including Banca Romana de Dezvoltare (BRD), Banca Transilvania and financial investment companies (SIF).
After December 22, 1989, he got engaged in the reconstruction of the Liberal political movement of the former National Liberal Party (PNL), being instrumental to the revival of the Liberalul and Viitorul publications. He was a member of the PNL secretariat in the period ahead of the May 1990 elections. He was also a member of the group that in July 1990 created the National Liberal Party - Young Wing. In June 1992 he resigned from that party to become a member of the New Liberal Party (NPL). Following a unification congress of PNL and NPL in February 1993, he was elected deputy chairman of PNL, an office he held until October 2, 2004, when he was appointed acting chairman. On October 2, 2004, he became co-chair of the Truth and Justice Alliance (D.A.) of PNL and the Democratic Party.
At an extraordinary convention of the PNL Congress on February 4, 2005, he was elected PNL Chairman, 1,110 to 161. On January 13, 2007 he was reelected for two more years. Out of the total of cast ballots, 1,194 were for an 100 cancelled, without any vote against. On March 20, 2009 he lost the PNL chairmanship to his challenger Crin Antonescu, 546 to 873.
In 2003-2007, he was deputy chairman of the European Liberal Democrat and Reform Party (ELDR).
He won a seat in the Chamber of Deputies representing the western county of Arad in the May 20, 1990 general election. He won reelection in the November 3, 1996 and November 26, 2000 elections running on the PNL tickets of Bucharest City. In 1996-2000, he was a member on the Chamber of Deputies' Committee on Economic Policy, Reform and Privatisation, and deputy chairman of the Chamber's Committee on Budget, Finance and Banks.
December 12, 1996 - December 5, 1997, he was the minister of industry and commerce in a Cabinet headed by Victor Ciorbea.
On November 28, 2004 he won again a seat in the Chamber of Deputies having run on the PNL tickets of Bucharest City, and in the 2004-2008 Legislature he was a member on the Committee on Human Rights, Religious Affairs and National Minorities.
On December 22, 2004, he was designated the prime minister by President Traian Basescu and entrusted with forming a new Cabinet. On December 29, 2004, he was sworn in office along with his Cabinet. He was Romania's prime minister until December 22, 2008, when he was replaced by Emil Boc.
On November 30, 2008, he won another seat having run in the 4th Single-Vote College of Ilfov. In the 2008-2012 Legislature he was the leader of the National Liberal Party (PNL) MP group in the Chamber of Deputies, a member on the Committee on Foreign Affairs as well as deputy chairman of the Joint Constitutional Revision Board of the Chamber of Deputies and the Senate.
In the December 9, 2012 general election he won a seat in the Senate having run on the tickets of the Social Liberal Union (USL) in the Bucharest 2nd Single-Vote College, 2nd District. He is a member on the Senate's Foreign Affairs Committee and chairman of the Romania-France Parliamentary Friendship Group.
On February 26, 2014, he resigned from PNL and announced he would create a new party, the Liberal Reform Party and he would run for Romania's presidency.
On March 10, 2014, at that time non-affiliated, he was elected chairman of the Senate, with 95 votes for and 60 against.
He is the author of over 35 scientific works and articles on water supply and water treatment.
He is the father of two children, Calin and Mihai.