PNL dissolves leadership of six branches after poor election results, Bolojan takes control of party think-tank

Dismissals across six branches

On Monday evening, the National Political Bureau (BPN) of the National Liberal Party (PNL) voted to dismiss the presidents and dissolve the political bureaus of six territorial organizations. The affected branches are Ialomița county, Galați county, and sectors 2, 3, 4, and 5 of Bucharest. In Galați, the decision specifically revoked interim president George Scarlat. The vote passed with a two-thirds majority, as required by Article 74 of the PNL Statute.

Bolojan ties move to electoral performance

Party president Ilie Bolojan told the BPN that the dismissals were based on poor results in the last elections managed independently by the party, including the presidential and parliamentary ballots. He said those counties scored well below the party average.

There are counties in Romania where PNL, in the last elections managed on its own, obtained results far below the party average. That is a fact.

Bolojan argued that bringing in new people could help the party improve its standing ahead of the 2028 elections. He insisted the evaluation was strictly performance-based, not driven by other considerations.

Internal pushback: "witch hunt" and calls for elections

The move drew sharp criticism from some party figures. Adrian Veștea, the PNL leader in Brașov and a former prime minister-designate, called for internal elections instead of dismissals.

I think it would be necessary to start the democratic procedure of organizing elections and not to make dismissals and change the rules during the game. Otherwise we are just conducting a witch hunt and sanctioning certain colleagues.

Hubert Thuma, the Ilfov branch leader, reproached Bolojan for not delivering on promised bottom-up elections. According to sources, Thuma said that elections never came and that mandates were extended instead.

Think-tank board reshaped

In the same session, the BPN approved a new Board of Directors for the Institute of Popular Studies (ISP), the party's main policy think-tank. The board now includes current PNL president Ilie Bolojan, three former party presidents, Valeriu Stoica, Emil Boc, and Theodor Stolojan, and younger-generation figures Robert Sighiartău, Sebastian Burduja, and Dragoș Pîslaru.

Part of a wider internal overhaul

Monday's dismissals follow a broader internal purge that began in June, when the central leadership did not renew mandates for 13 other county branches. Among those who lost executive roles at that time were Alina Gorghiu in Argeș and Hubert Thuma in Ilfov. The party says the measures aim to align local organizations with national strategy and improve electoral performance.