Romeo Stavarache
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Romeo Stavarache is the mayor of the city of Bacău, Romania. In 2004, he succeeded in defeating one of the most powerful "local barons", Dumitru Sechelaru, mayor of Bacău between 1996 and 2004. Stavarache, practically unknown to the electorate until a few months before the elections, exploited the mistakes made by his adversary, as well as the general fatigue expressed by many Romanians with regard to the Social Democratic Party (PSD) policies and the "local PSD barons" who were often believed to be corrupt.
Unlike Sechelaru, who was an auto mechanic transformed rather curiously into a multi-miilionaire businessman, Stavarache is reputed Chemical Engineer. He is an inventor, having won several important international awards. In 2004, at the time of the latest local elections, Stavarache was the leader of the Humanist Romanian Party (PUR) - Bacău section. The party he represented was allied, at that time, with the PSD, but had little backing from the electorate. However, in Bacău County, a traditional stronghold for PSD and its financial coffers, Stavarache succeeded to defeat Sechelaru and subsequently provoke an explosion of joy all over the city. On the evening of June 20, 2004, hearing that the hard to crack "arrogant" Sechelaru had been crushed at the polls, thousands of people went out into the streets, forcing the doors of the mayor's house, where Sechelaru was hiding. Sechelaru succeeded in escaping only after local police escorted him out, while people were shouting slogans against him and the PSD.
Stavarache's victory was not so much his personal success than Sechelaru's punishment for his arrogance and shady affairs. In August 2004, after having a political argument with the national leader of PUR (Dan Voiculescu), Romeo Stavarache decided to quit his political party and join the Liberals. Late in December 2004, the Liberals, allied with the Democrats and other smaller political forces, forced PSD out of power and won a majority in Parliament. In 2005, Stavarache won a much contested local competition for the position of PNL leader - Bacău section. Attacked in the local media for various irregularities and presumed acts of corruption done by his close collaborators, Stavarache proved to have an unexpected talent for solving difficult political matters and survive in a volatile political environment.
