Who Is Nicușor Dan: Mathematician Turned Mayor Who Wants to Lead Romania

Update: Interested in live coverage of the elections, with constant updates and insights? Check out my dedicated article here: 2025 Romanian Presidential Elections.

Nicușor Dan is not your typical politician. There is no party machine behind him, he has poor showmanship and a direct, seemingly honest, no-fluff rhetoric. He is a man with great academic accomplishments, he has a deep distrust of bureaucracy, and an unwavering belief that Romania can be honest, smart, and fair.

Nicușor Dan is running for president in 2025 and does so as an underdog behind the much better-placed populist candidate George Simion.

In the first round of the presidential elections, he narrowly defeated Crin Antonescu (with less than a percentage point difference) to qualify for the finals. I am sure you’re curious to learn more about him, so let’s jump right in!

A Snapshot of His Private Life

Born on December 20, 1969, in the small town of Făgăraș, Dan’s early years were focused on school and study. By the late 1980s, he was already making international headlines, but not in politics. Instead, he won prestigious math competitions: two gold medals at the International Mathematical Olympiad in 1987 and 1988.

Dan studied at “Radu Negru” High School in his hometown, then moved on to the University of Bucharest, where he graduated in mathematics. He won a spot at the École Normale Supérieure in Paris, and later earned a PhD in mathematics from the University of Paris XIII.

He could have stayed abroad. He could have been a tenured professor in France. But he chose to return to Romania.

From 1998 to 2016, he worked as a researcher at the Romanian Academy’s Institute of Mathematics, publishing academically and gaining a reputation for precision, skepticism, and stubbornness, traits that would serve him in political battles to come.

And, even after becoming a public figure – and Bucharest’s mayor – he remains very private about his family life. He’s in a long-term relationship, a father of two, and rarely invites cameras into his home.

To many, he appears to be just a regular guy with hopes for a better future. A guy who also acts on his beliefs, takes a stance, and fights a corrupted system to make things better.

He’s not flashy, he’s not bombastic, he’s not an amazing speaker – all of which appear to matter a lot in today’s political landscape – but he lets his actions and accomplishments speak for himself.

And apparently that is enough, as he managed to silently rise to become Bucharest’s mayor and now has a chance to become Romania’s president.

Civic Activism: Building Change from the Outside

Dan’s public activism began in 2000 when he launched the Youth for Civic Action NGO, aimed at re-connecting Romanian students abroad with civic causes at home.

By 2008, he also founded Asociația “Salvați Bucureștiul” (Save Bucharest Association), Romania’s best-known NGO for urban planning and heritage protection. The group sued the City Hall and won repeatedly, which was both surprising and uncommon at the time.

Under Dan’s leadership, Save Bucharest:

• Fought illegal demolitions of heritage buildings,
• Campaigned for greener zoning laws,
• Won major legal victories against corrupt urban developers.

This success gave him credibility and a new base of supporters tired of political complacency, which also resulted in the next important step in his career.

From NGO to City Hall

Dan entered formal politics in 2015, co-founding the Save Romania Union (USR). Within a year, he was elected to Parliament and then ran for Bucharest mayor, finishing second, though.

Frustrated by the party’s shift toward a more progressive ideological line, Dan left USR in 2017, choosing independence and a dedicated focus on Bucharest.

In 2020, he ran as an independent for Mayor General of Bucharest and won. Four years later, in 2024, he won re-election with over 47% of the vote, consolidating his reputation as a reformist who can win on merit.

What Did He Actually Do as Mayor?

While mayorship accomplishments rarely mean anything for a president, they also paint a clearer picture of who a person is. And Nicusor Dan managed to do plenty of great things for Romania’s capital.

Transparency & Digital Tools

• Launched the “București Open Data” portal to publish all municipal contracts and spending.
• Created the “Primăria Mea” app, letting citizens report issues directly to City Hall with photos and GPS tagging.

Public Transport Modernization

• Introduced dedicated bus lanes and an integrated e-ticketing system.
• Launched pilot bike-share programs – small-scale, but a shift in mindset.

More Green in the Grey

• Turned unused lots into pocket parks, increasing green space per capita by over 20%.
• Backed a moratorium on demolishing pre-war villas in heritage neighborhoods.

Pedestrian Zones and Traffic Reform

• Pedestrianized parts of Piaţa Victoriei, rebalancing road space toward bikes and public transport.
• Aims: less pollution, less congestion, more livable streets.

Failures: Crisis Response Missteps

• In May 2022, a failure at Otopeni’s pumping station left parts of the city without water for days.
• Critics say he lacked a rapid-response plan. Supporters say the crisis exposed inherited infrastructure rot.

The 2025 Presidential Campaign

Running under the banner of “România Onestă” (Honest Romania), Dan promises anti-corruption, modernization, and civic ethics. That and a clear, pro-European stance.

His vision includes:

• Public Spending: Full transparency; digitize public finance tracking.
• Urban Planning: Extend legal protections for green spaces and heritage beyond Bucharest.
• Education & Research: Stronger funding for STEM disciplines; promote Romanian research globally.
• E-Governance: Bring every ministry and city hall online with digital workflows.
• Defense & Security: Deepen NATO alignment; reform army structure and spending.

While important things are missing from his program, including a clear tax plan, his supporters considers that he has proven himself as Bucharest’s mayor and are confident that he will have solutions to all problems he might encounter.

On key social and global issues, his stance is as follows:

• Religion: Practicing Orthodox, but opposes church-politics alliances, saying that it desecrates both.
• LGBTQ+ Rights: Refused to reveal his 2018 referendum vote not to enter an “ideological dispute”. However, he supports parliamentary mediation on civil partnerships.
• Russia-Ukraine Conflict: Firmly pro-Ukraine, pro-NATO. Calls for army reform to deter future threats.

Can He Win?

Nicușor Dan sits at a political crossroads: popular among the educated urban class, but unknown or misunderstood outside major cities. In other words, he has a huge challenge ahead, but he’s used to being the underdog.

I do believe that he gets into the election with the second chance and he needs something close to a miracle to defeat populist George Simion.

But anything is possible, and with Nicușor Dan offering something rare: an honest record, a long view, and a brain used to solving problems, so maybe that’s going to be enough. We’ll see.

What do you think about Nicusor Dan? Would he make for a solid president and, most importantly – is there any chance he will become one?