PSD to state position on early elections

The ruling party this week will state its official position on organising early elections. A PSD (Social Democrat Party) delegation headed by PM Adrian Nastase will meet with President Ion Iliescu at Cotroceni tomorrow, with early elections among the issues to be discussed.
The PSD leaders yesterday debated “the pros and cons of early elections” in their weekly meeting. “We will state our position” in a matter of days, PSD general secretary Cozmin Gusa yesterday said, adding that none of the members of the Permanent Delegation, the decision-making forum of the party had spoken against this idea during the talks.
“The cons came from certain political parties. We will have to analyse these positions,” Gusa said, adding President’s Iliescu’s position would also contribute to shaping an official stand. “We are currently debating the issue inside our party. We want to have separate meetings these days,” Gusa said.
Although not officially announced, the issue will probably be approached during PSD’s delegation meeting with Ion Iliescu, as part of a series of consultations the chief of state has scheduled this week with the parliamentary political parties over the upcoming NATO summit in Prague. PM Adrian Nastase is to leave for Warsaw on Thursday to attend a meeting of the European Socialists Party, so that the meeting at the Cotroceni Palace remains the only opportunity for reviewing the early elections issue this week. President Iliescu does not seem to agree with this issue.
“We want to be very plain,” Gusa yesterday said, adding that if the party officially opted for early elections in 2003, the “technicalities” of organising the elections would be analysed later.
Last week, Alexandru Athanasiu, chairman of the National PSD Council admitted that under the current Constitution, commencing the early elections was almost impossible as the technical framework would push them close the term elections, therefore there would be no reason to rush.
One thing should be noted, though, that is the periodicity the PSD shows in bringing this issue up again and again and the fact that whatever started out as “a way to bring various options up for the public debate” several months ago,  is now turning, in very exact terms, into a matter of “option” for the majority party.
The early elections issue sprang to attention again yesterday, due to PSD’s results in the 20 localities where local by-elections were organised on Sunday.
PSD won nine of the 11 mayor positions won by candidates in the first round and has candidates in the runoffs in the rest of the localities. As regards the 11 localities where elections for councillor positions were held, as well, for which voting is cast for party slates, as in the case of legislative elections, PSD won more than 40% of the total mandates, according to Gusa.