Romania’s new President sworn in as political crisis eases

Bucharest: Romania’s newly elected president Nicusor Dan was officially sworn in on Monday, ushering in a tentative close to the worst political crisis to grip the European Union country in decades after the annulment of the previous election. But multiple challenges lie ahead.

Dan decisively won the tense rerun in a runoff on May 18, beating his hard-right opponent George Simion, who later challenged the results at a top court, but was rejected last week.

At the inauguration ceremony in a joint session of Parliament, Dan signed the constitutional oath. In a speech afterward, he promised to tackle

Romania’s economic woes and to be a president “open to the voice of society.”

“The Romanian state needs a fundamental change ... and I invite you to continue to be involved with all the social force you

have proven, to put positive pressure on the institutions of the Romanian state so that they can reform,” he said.