Klaus Iohannis

President of Romania

Klaus Werner Iohannis 13 June 1959 Sibiu, Sibiu County, Romania

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Incumbent

Romanian politician; President of Romania (2014–present time) Klaus Iohannis5th President of RomaniaIncumbentAssumed office 21 December 2014Prime Minister See full list Victor Ponta Gabriel Oprea (Acting) Victor Ponta Sorin Cîmpeanu (Acting) Dacian Cioloș Sorin Grindeanu Mihai Tudose Mihai Fifor (Acting) Viorica Dăncilă Ludovic Orban Nicolae Ciucă (Acting) Florin CîțuPreceded by Traian BăsescuMayor of SibiuIn office 30 June 2000 – 2 December 2014Preceded by Dan ConduratSucceeded by Astrid FodorLeader of the National Liberal PartyIn office 28 June 2014 – 18 December 2014Preceded by Crin AntonescuSucceeded by Alina Gorghiu Vasile BlagaLeader of the Democratic Forum of Germans in RomaniaIn office 2002–2013Preceded by Eberhard Wolfgang WittstockSucceeded by Paul-Jürgen Porr Personal detailsBornKlaus Werner Iohannis (1959-06-13 ) 13 June 1959 (age 62) Sibiu, Sibiu County, RomaniaPolitical partyIndependent (2014–present)Other political affiliationsDemocratic Forum of Germans in Romania (1990–2013) National Liberal Party (2013–2014)Spouse(s)Carmen Lăzurcă ​(m. 1989)​ResidenceCotroceni PalaceEducationSamuel von Brukenthal National CollegeAlma materBabeș-Bolyai University (BSc)OccupationHigh school teacher, politicianProfessionPhysicistReligionLutheranSignaturea. ^ PNL membership suspended while president Klaus Werner Iohannis (Romanian pronunciation:  , German: ; also spelled Johannis; born 13 June 1959) is the president of Romania. He became leader of the National Liberal Party (PNL) in 2014, after having served as leader of the Democratic Forum of Germans in Romania (FDGR/DFDR) from 2002 to 2013. Iohannis was a physics teacher and a school inspector before entering full-time politics. Iohannis was elected the mayor of the city of Sibiu (German: Hermannstadt) in 2000, representing the Democratic Forum of Germans in Romania. Although the German population of the once predominantly German-speaking city of Sibiu had declined to a tiny minority, Iohannis won a surprise victory and was re-elected by landslides in 2004, 2008, and 2012. Iohannis is credited with turning his city into one of Romania's most popular tourist destinations, and the city was declared the European Capital of Culture in 2007. In February 2013, Iohannis became a member of the National Liberal Party (PNL), accepting an invitation from then liberal leader Crin Antonescu, and was immediately elected the party's First Vice President, eventually becoming the PNL President during the following year. In October 2009, four of the five political groups in the Parliament, excluding the Democratic Liberal Party (PDL) of then-President Traian Băsescu, proposed him as a candidate for the office of Prime Minister of Romania; however, Băsescu refused to nominate him despite the Parliament's adoption of a declaration supporting his candidacy. He was again the candidate for Prime Minister of the National Liberal Party (PNL) and the Social Democratic Party (PSD) in the elections in the same year. Iohannis is the first Romanian president to come from an ethnic minority as he is a Transylvanian Saxon, part of Romania's German minority, which settled in Transylvania beginning in the 12th century. He was initially elected in 2014 and then subsequently re-elected in 2019.