Meet Elena Lasconi: Romania’s Pro-European Hopeful for President

Elena Lasconi, one of Romania’s candidates for the Presidency in the May 2025 elections, seems to be the big loser here. She initially qualified for the second round of the now-annulled Presidential Elections in 2024, facing Calin Georgescu, who was denied participation in the new elections.

A lot has changed in the few months since the original elections, and she is now considered a major outsider, with polls showing her at around 6% in the voters’ preferences, and fifth placed, compared to the 19% she received in the 2024 Presidential Elections.

But who is Elena Lasconi?

A former journalist turned politician, Elena Valerica Lasconi is the Mayor of the small city of Câmpulung and USR’s leader. As a 2025 presidential candidate, she emphasizes justice reform, labor tax reduction, economic reforms and better public infrastructure.

Of course, the summary above is just the tip of the iceberg. If you want to get truly in-depth, you should read everything about the politician who was so close to writing history – becoming Romania’s first ever female president.

Elena Lasconi’s Personal Life

Born on April 20, 1972 in Hațeg, Hunedoara County, Lasconi had no plans to join politics. She trained as a teacher in Deva, became a certified PC analyst in 1991, and later graduated in tourism and trade management, officially from the Bucharest Academy of Economic Studies, after attending courses at the Ecological University in Deva.

She built her reputation during a long career at Romania’s Pro TV, working as a correspondent, war reporter, presenter, and producer from 1996 to 2020.

She was a household name. And then, at the height of her media career, she walked away and decided to get into politics.

Lasconi is married and has one daughter from her first marriage. Her current husband, Cătălin Georgescu, happens to share a name eerily similar to her presidential opponent from the 2024 elections, Călin Georgescu – a twist of fate that social media hasn’t stopped talking about.

Elena Lasconi’s Switch to Politics

Lasconi joined the Save Romania Union (USR) in 2018, and just two years later, she was elected Mayor of Câmpulung, a city that had largely been ignored in national politics.

There, she made waves – not just for her leadership style, but for the fact that she actually delivered results that the citizens of the small city loved. When she ran for re-election in 2024, she secured a massive 71% of the vote.

In 2024, she was also elected USR’s leader and their Presidential candidate. She performed surprisingly well in the first round of the Presidential elections, qualifying for the second round ahead of Marcel Ciolacu, the expected winner of the elections (who didn’t even qualify for the second round), but edging into the final confrontation with Calin Georgescu, a far-right figure with extremist backing.

Lasconi’s Vision for Romania

As a presidential candidate, Elena Lasconi built her campaign on a commitment to advancing democratic, EU-friendly principles and ensuring justice and fairness for all citizens.

She advocates for a government that prioritizes the needs of the people over political interests. Her campaign centers on creating a Romania where essential services like education (with a switch of focus to practical skills), healthcare, and public infrastructure function effectively.

Her vision extends to supporting decent incomes for Romanians by lowering salary taxes – which currently take almost 50% of Romanians’ income.

Her plans include strengthening Romania’s international relationships, particularly with NATO and the European Union. Lasconi’s campaign reflects a clear vision for a modern, fair, and inclusive Romania that serves its citizens with integrity and purpose.

Here’s a quick summary of what she’s fighting for:

Justice Reform

• Public hearings for judicial appointments.
• Strengthening the National Anticorruption Directorate (DNA).
• Investigating corruption within the magistrates.

Healthcare

• Introducing a third healthcare pillar, similar to the second pension pillar.
• Allowing Romanians to choose their own hospitals and doctors through redirected contributions.

Education

• Abolishing school inspectorates.
• Increasing the power of school boards involving teachers, parents, and local officials.
• Shifting the curriculum toward practical life skills.

Taxation & Economic Reform

• Zero taxes on the first employment contract for two years.
• Dismantling 187 state agencies, cutting waste.
• Reducing Parliament to 300 members, as per a referendum’s results.
• Privatized recovery of corruption damages if the state fails within one year.

Foreign Policy & Defense

• Pro-NATO and pro-EU.
• Strengthening Romania’s strategic partnership with the U.S.
• Condemning Russian aggression in Ukraine.
• Calling for mechanisms to down Russian drones violating Romanian airspace.

Climate & Environment

• National climate adaptation strategy based on Câmpulung’s local model.

Her policies may not be flashy, but they hit at the heart of what most Romanians care about: fairness, respect, and opportunity. And let’s be honest – after years of political disappointments, these are refreshing priorities.

Elena Lasconi’s LGBTQ+ Controversy

No political career is without its hiccups, and Elena’s is no exception. Back in 2018, she voted in favor of a referendum defining family strictly as a union between a man and a woman. This move caused an uproar, especially from her daughter who is a vocal supporter of LGBTQ+ rights and openly bisexual.

The fallout was messy. Elena withdrew from USR’s list of candidates for the European Parliament (apparently forced by the party’s president at the time), and her daughter publicly criticized her, saying that she’s shocked and disgusted (source).

Elena Lasconi has since changed her stance, saying she would no longer vote like she did. The mother-daughter duo has reconciled, and her daughter even campaigned for her during the presidential elections, saying she’s proud of the woman Elena has become.

Education Scandal

Critics accused her of omitting the Ecological University of Deva from her CV, listing only ASE Bucharest. She claimed she listed the institution where she graduated from, not where she initially studied.

The reason why this matters is because the Ecological University of Deva is a private university, and some Romanians still hold a stigma against private Universities, which are considered less worthy in terms of their educational value.

The Trump Letter

Following the annulment of the first round of the 2024 Presidential Elections, Lasconi sent a letter via social media to Donald Trump and Elon Musk, claiming Romania is being manipulated by Russia and calling on the former U.S. president to pay attention.

This move sparked sharp criticism, with many questioning both the tone and the target of her appeal.

What’s Next for Elena Lasconi?

Elena’s journey to the presidency is anything but smooth sailing, especially in the new elections, where she is facing a brand new set of candidates (except George Simion) and polls give her no chance for reaching the second round.

Romania is still in a deep political crisis, and many have questioned her decision to stay in the race as opposed to quitting and supporting the better-ranked Nicusor Dan instead.

She even lost the support of her political party, which announced that they instead support Nicusor Dan, but this move only managed to deepen the crisis and scandals.

Final Thoughts

Elena Lasconi is proof that politics isn’t just for career politicians. She’s a journalist-turned-leader, a mother, a reformist, and she almost became Romania’s president.

She represents the hope of many pro-Europeans across the country, who see her as the leader capable of steering Romania toward a progressive and democratic future.

At the same time, there are other pro-European leaders in the race, and they rank better in the polls, meaning that Lasconi’s chances of reaching even the second round of the elections once more are minimal.