A political scientist explains why the December 7 elections are a test for Nicușor Dan. Three reasons why the race for Bucharest is tighter than ever
Nicușor Dan, together with Cătălin Drula and Dominic Fritz, on Sunday, November 2, 2025, at the event to launch Drula's candidacy for the Capital City Hall. Inquam Photos / Codrin Unici
The vote in the Capital on December 7 will not only be a competition between parties, but also a political test for President Nicușor Dan, says political scientist Cristian Preda in an article published on the 1848 Comunitatea Liberală platform.
“The ballot in the Capital on December 7 is a test for the parties. If in 2024, USR and its United Right allies managed to take first place, with a one percent lead over PSD, while PNL did not even have half of the leaders' percentages, and AUR was at 8 percent, now things could be different,” wrote Preda.
According to the professor of political sciences, the electoral race in Bucharest is expected to be more balanced for several reasons: “First of all, because PNL and AUR have stronger candidates than they were, Sebastian Burduja and Mihai Enache, a year ago. The mayor from 6, Ciprian Ciucu, and the TV host Anca Alexandrescu are known to the people of Bucharest and have more clearly defined profiles than their predecessors.”
“Secondly, the race will be tighter because PSD no longer hesitated about its candidate: last year, M. Ciolacu wanted to block Firea, so, together with N. Ciucă, they threw doctor Cîrstoiu into the race, who they abandoned after only a few days.”
“Thirdly, the competition is organized differently: we no longer have the incumbent mayor who wants re-election and his challengers, one more ambitious – read: more ridiculous – than the other, but new candidates, who want to occupy the seat left empty by the mayor-in-chief who became president”, the political scientist noted.
Preda believes that the stakes are also high for Nicușor Dan, who “decided to get involved in the campaign” and supports Cătălin Drula. “Thus turning the election into a major political test. Because if the userist loses, so will the president.”
According to the political scientist, for other leaders, a defeat would have limited consequences: “If Ciucu does not win, the prime minister will be somewhat shaken in the party, but not outside of it. The world will forget the next day that Bolojan supported a loser. On the other hand, for Nicușor Dan, the political stake is major.”
“On the other hand, for Nicușor Dan, the political stake is major. The vote at the General City Hall was always political, not administrative. From Halaicu to Firea, and from Băsescu to Oprescu, the leaders of a political camp were voted for, not experts, more or less certified, in asphalting, recyclable waste or pipe repairs. On December 7, the stake for the PNL, the PSD and the AUR is to win the votes collected by N. Dan in the first round of the presidential elections, when he had 361,497 citizens with him, or on June 9, 2024, in the local elections, when he had convinced about nine thousand less, i.e. 352,734 Bucharest citizens”, continued Preda.
“It is hard to believe that Drula will be able to collect 350 thousand votes. If he emerges as mayor, the world will have a harder time counting how many votes his most influential supporter lost. But if the userist does not win, the president's opponents will make a banner with how many votes he has left in Bucharest”, concluded Cristian Preda, professor at the Faculty of Political Sciences of the University of Bucharest.
