Emil Constantinescu

Emil Constantinescu (born 19 November 1939) is a Romanian politician and professor, who served as the second President of Romania from 1996 to 2000. After the Romanian Revolution of 1989, Constantinescu became a founding member and vice president of the Civic Alliance (AC). In addition, he also served as the acting president of the Democratic Romanian Anti-Totalitarian Forum, the first associative structure of the democratic opposition in post-1989 Romania, which was later transformed into a centre-right political and electoral alliance known as the Romanian Democratic Convention (CDR). He subsequently presided over the People's Action (AP) party from the early 2000s until it merged into the National Liberal Party (PNL) in 2008.

Early life and education Emil Constantinescu was born on 19 November 1939, in Tighina, Ținutul Nistru, Kingdom of Romania, which today is de facto part of Transnistria. His mother, Maria Georgeta Colceag, was born in Ploiești on 24 April 1916, and, after graduating from high school, was a student at the Bucharest Conservatory in the harp class, but gave up her career in music to follow her husband, Ion Constantinescu. The Constantinescu family took refuge in 1943 in Brădetu village, Argeș County where Emil spent his childhood.

From 1953 to 1956, Constantinescu was a student of the "Nicolae Bălcescu" High School in Pitești (currently Colegiu I.C. Brătianu), and obtained his matriculation diploma on 19 July 1956. In the same year, he enrolled at the Faculty of Law of the University of Bucharest. He obtained a Diploma in Legal Sciences in 1960 and after completing his military internship in Piatra Neamț, he began his work as a trainee judge at the Pitesti Regional Court, economic section. His father died in 1991, and his mother died in 2011.

Professional career

Constantinescu went through all stages of his university career as an assistant and lecturer at the Faculty of Geology (1966–1990). Since 1991 onwards, he has been a professor of Mineralogy at the University of Bucharest. He is also an honorary member and elected member of the Geological and Mineralogical Societies of the United Kingdom, Germany, the United States, Greece, and Japan; of the Geographical Society of France and the National Geographic Society in the United States.

Constantinescu has lectured at major universities, including the University of Tübingen, the University of Oxford, Stanford University, Harvard University, Berkeley, Columbia, and Georgetown, and has spoken in cities such as Bloomington, Rio de Janeiro, Sydney, Prague, Turku, Cairo, and Lublin. He was one of the personalities who protested against the anti‑democratic actions of the new authorities during a 42‑day rally, between April and May 1990, in Bucharest's University Square.

One of the last gestures he made as president of Romania was the pardon of Ion Coman, a former Romanian Armed Forces general who was in charge of the repression of the 1989 Romanian revolution in Timișoara.

Post-presidency (2000–present)

Constantinescu's presidency, along with CDR's governance, was marred by an economic recession. Despite this, his presidency has been eventually credited with putting an end to the Mineriads, a reform of the banking system, as well as with the attraction of the first major foreign investments in Romania after 1989. With dashed expectations of an immediate improvement in daily life, Romanians exhibited strong disillusionment with the major parties and politicians of the CDR at the end of the 1996–2000 legislature, with the Greater Romania Party (PRM) subsequently gaining second place in the 2000 legislative election.

A disenchanted Constantinescu, who lost popularity and had failed to fulfil his reformist agenda, announced on 17 July 2000 that he would not run for a second term. He temporarily withdrew from political life at the end of his term in November 2000. However, after Ion Iliescu's return to power in 2000, Constantinescu continued to be actively engaged in foreign affairs. Eventually, Romania joined NATO in 2004 and the European Union (EU) three years later, in 2007, alongside Bulgaria.

Constantinescu returned to the political scene in 2002 as head of the People's Action (AP; Acțiunea Populară) party, which subsequently merged with the National Liberal Party (PNL) in 2008.

Constantinescu had occasionally criticized the policies of the 2004–2014 president, Traian Băsescu, accusing him of authoritarian tendencies, and supported Crin Antonescu in the first round of the 2009 presidential elections.

Constantinescu remains heavily involved in politics through working for many NGOs, both in Romania and internationally. He is the current president of the Association of Citizenship Education at the Romanian Foundation for Democracy, and was also the founding president of the Institute for Regional Cooperation and Conflict Prevention (INCOR).

A frequent speaker at the Oslo Freedom Forum, in 2010, he presented the OFF with a presidential medal. He is also a member of the international advisory council of the Victims of Communism Memorial Foundation.

In July 2023, Constantinescu criticised Romanian lawmakers for a lack of vision and long-term strategy for the country's future.

As of 2025, President Emil Constantinescu remains the oldest living president of Romania, following the death of former President Ion Iliescu in August 2025.

Honours and awards

National honours Order of the Star of Romania, 1st Class Emblema de Onoare a Armatei României ("The Romanian Army's Badge of Honor") – 24 October 2012

Foreign honours Grand Star of the Decoration of Honour for Services to the Republic of Austria (1999) Grand Cross of the Grand Order of King Tomislav (2000) Knight of the Order of the Elephant (2000) Grand Cross with Collar of the Order of the White Rose of Finland (1998) Grand Cross with Diamonds of the Order of the Sun of Peru (2 September 1998) Grand Cross of the Order of St. Olav (1999) Grand Collar of the Order of Prince Henry (2000) Grand Cross (or 1st Class) of the Order of the White Double Cross (2000) Order of the State of Republic of Turkey (1999) First Class of the Order of Prince Yaroslav the Wise (2000) Honorary Knight Grand Cross of the Order of St Michael and St George (2000)

Electoral history Presidential elections

ElectionAffiliationFirst roundSecond roundVotesPercentagePositionVotesPercentagePosition 1992 3,717,006 4,641,207 1996 3,569,941 7,057,906