Parliament elects Sorin Lazăr interim head of Romania's Court of Accounts with PSD and AUR votes

The vote

Parliament elected Sorin Lazăr interim president of the Court of Accounts (Curtea de Conturi) on Tuesday, 10 November 2026, with 248 votes in favour, 54 against and 48 abstentions. Mediafax reports that three MPs present did not vote. The proposal came from PSD deputy Adrian Câciu and first passed the joint budget and finance committees of the Chamber of Deputies and the Senate by 25 votes to 12, with one abstention. PSD and AUR backed the candidacy, while PNL and USR opposed it.

Lazăr was not present at the committee debate, and HotNews reports that the committees validated him in his absence. According to Ziare.com he is a former PSD deputy from Buzău who has served as a court of accounts counsellor since October 2020, and G4Media gives his age as 64.

In favour248

Against54

Abstentions48

In favour

248 votes

Against

54 votes

Abstentions

48 votes

Data from the article text

Vacancy and what comes next

The presidency has been empty since July 2025, when Mihai Busuioc became a judge at the Constitutional Court. Mirela Călugăreanu, a former head of the tax authority (Fisc), then held the post on an interim basis, and her mandate has now expired, according to Ziare.com and G4Media. HotNews notes that parliament has not yet started the procedure for appointing a full-mandate president or vice-presidents.

According to Digi24, the full-mandate post was meant for PSD deputy prime minister Marian Neacșu once he leaves the government. Bogdan Huțucă, the Liberal chair of the Chamber's budget committee, argued that the nominee's absence did not matter because parliament had already heard Lazăr when he was named a court counsellor. Huțucă added that, with no proposals from other parties, the legitimate interest in keeping the Court of Accounts functioning remained.

Opposition accuses PSD and AUR of a deal

PNL and USR accused PSD and AUR of again working together to install their own people in key state posts. USR deputy Adrian Echert said PSD needs certain votes only to invest the government, and for anything else it turns to AUR.

“For anything else there is AUR.”

PNL senator Gabriela Horga went further, saying the PSD-AUR alliance had once again moved forward and had taken over another state institution. She linked the vote to the talks over the leadership of Televiziunea Română and Radio Public, accusing the two parties of dividing posts between them.

“Today we again saw the PSD-AUR alliance moving forward. The PSD-AUR alliance has captured yet another state institution.”

USR deputy Cezar Drăgoescu complained that MPs learned the proposal very late and that Lazăr should have been present to speak. He argued that parliament was filling institutions with politicians rather than professionals.

Replies from PSD and AUR

Adrian Câciu rejected the criticism and said the PNL and USR were aiming their attacks at PSD and at the vote cast by citizens. He told the chamber that he had been asking for two days what the goal of the modernisation pole was.

“For two days I have been asking what the goal of the modernisation pole is.”

AUR senator Petrișor Peiu denied the existence of a PSD-AUR governing majority, arguing that a majority is made up of the MPs who vote a government into office, not of parties that back the same bills. He also said AUR would vote alongside PNL and USR on a future no-confidence motion against the government, as it had done earlier with PSD.