Raluca Turcan
Encyclopedia
Raluca Turcan is a Romania
n politician. A member of the Democratic Liberal Party
(PD-L), she has been a member of the Romanian Chamber of Deputies
for Sibiu County
since 2004.
She has been married to Valeriu Turcan
, an adviser to Romanian President
Traian Băsescu
, since 2004. The couple have a son, Eric, born in 2007.
to Dumitru and Maria-Margareta Tatarcan; her father is a high school principal. She studied in the Faculty of International Economic Relations at the Bucharest Academy of Economic Studies, graduating in 1999. She was also enrolled at Moscow
's Pushkin Institute from 1996 to 1999, and earned a degree in business Russian
from there. In 2006 she began work on a master's degree in political marketing at the National School of Administration and Political Science of Bucharest
, and that year she also began a doctorate at the Transylvania University of Braşov
. She has also pursued studies in Austria
and in the United States
. From 1999 to 2000, she worked as a public relations consultant for Tofan Grup, an automobile tyre distributor. She was then a parliamentary expert at the Romanian Senate from 2000 to 2004, and from 2000 to 2006 was an associated professor at Transylvania University and at the Romanian-German University of Sibiu.
Tatarcan began her political career in 2000, as an adviser to the president of the National Council of the National Liberal Party
(PNL). In 2002, she moved on to become an adviser to PNL President Theodor Stolojan
, which she remained until 2004. That year, which saw her elected
to Parliament, she joined the PNL's national leadership council, remaining until 2006. After being ejected from the PNL, she and fellow party dissidents Valeriu Stoica
and Cristian Boureanu
joined the Stolojan-founded Liberal Democratic Party
(PLD), serving as its vice president from March until December 2007. At that point, the party merged with the Democratic Party and Turcan became vice president of the new formation, the PD-L. She was re-elected
in 2008. While in the Chamber, she has served on several committees, and has twice been president of the Committee on Culture, Arts and Mass Media (2005-2006; since 2008).
Turcan has worked with civil society groups focusing on mass media, free expression, human rights and health. She has co-authored an English-Russian-Romanian dictionary of economic terms, as well as the book Integrare şi politică fiscală europeană ("Integration and European Fiscal Policy"). Additionally, she has published studies on European integration
and public relations.
During her career in politics, Turcan has been the subject of some controversy. After Călin Popescu-Tăriceanu
became PNL President and Prime Minister of Romania
in 2004, her public criticisms of the party began to increase, so that in July 2006, the party gave her a warning, to which she responded that she would continue making similar statements. She kept her word, and the party expelled her that September. Continuing to attack Tăriceanu, she was at the forefront of a group of PD-L deputies who in March 2008 asked prosecutors to investigate the prime minister for abuse of office and corruption in his attempts to impose an automobile tax (he has links to the industry), and, a year later, before Tăriceanu lost the PNL presidency, declared a united right-wing party encompassing the PD-L and the PNL could be formed if he and a few people around him left the PNL. Shortly after her expulsion, she complained of "a trio monopolising the party, made up of Tăriceanu, Olteanu
and Orban
, which has practically confiscated it and eliminates anyone who dares share a point of view different from theirs". By contrast, she has been a public supporter of Băsescu, whom she notes shares the PD-L's objectives, and whose suspension
she called "a serious abuse". She also predicted that current PNL leader Crin Antonescu
would lose to Băsescu at the 2009 election
and noted the party risked marginalisation if it continued its anti-Băsescu strategy. Turcan supports modifying the Constitution
in order to enhance presidential powers to those found in a consolidated semi-presidential system
.
Romania
Romania is a country located at the crossroads of Central and Southeastern Europe, on the Lower Danube, within and outside the Carpathian arch, bordering on the Black Sea...
n politician. A member of the Democratic Liberal Party
Democratic Liberal Party (Romania)
The Democratic Liberal Party is a populist, centre-right party in Romania. It was formed on 15 December 2007, when the Democratic Party merged with the Liberal Democratic Party. From 2004 to 2007, the Democratic Party was part of the governing Justice and Truth Alliance...
(PD-L), she has been a member of the Romanian Chamber of Deputies
Chamber of Deputies of Romania
The Chamber of Deputies is the lower house in Romania's bicameral parliament. It has 315 seats, to which deputies are elected by direct popular vote on a proportional representation basis to serve four-year terms...
for Sibiu County
Sibiu County
Sibiu is a county of Romania, in the historical region Transylvania, with the capital city Sibiu.-Demographics:In 2002, it had a population of 421,724 and the population density was 78/km²....
since 2004.
She has been married to Valeriu Turcan
Valeriu Turcan
Valeriu Turcan is a Romanian journalist. Since 2007, he has served as press secretary to President Traian Băsescu, as well as being an adviser of his in the Presidency's Communications Department....
, an adviser to Romanian President
President of Romania
The President of Romania is the head of state of Romania. The President is directly elected by a two-round system for a five-year term . An individual may serve two terms...
Traian Băsescu
Traian Basescu
Traian Băsescu is the current President of Romania. After serving as the mayor of Bucharest from June 2000 until December 2004, he was elected president in the Romanian Presidential Elections of 2004 and inaugurated on December 20, 2004...
, since 2004. The couple have a son, Eric, born in 2007.
Biography
She was born in BotoşaniBotosani
Botoșani is the capital city of Botoșani County, in northern Moldavia, Romania. Today, it is best known as the birthplace of many celebrated Romanians, including Mihai Eminescu and Nicolae Iorga.- Origin of the name :...
to Dumitru and Maria-Margareta Tatarcan; her father is a high school principal. She studied in the Faculty of International Economic Relations at the Bucharest Academy of Economic Studies, graduating in 1999. She was also enrolled at Moscow
Moscow
Moscow is the capital, the most populous city, and the most populous federal subject of Russia. The city is a major political, economic, cultural, scientific, religious, financial, educational, and transportation centre of Russia and the continent...
's Pushkin Institute from 1996 to 1999, and earned a degree in business Russian
Russian language
Russian is a Slavic language used primarily in Russia, Belarus, Uzbekistan, Kazakhstan, Tajikistan and Kyrgyzstan. It is an unofficial but widely spoken language in Ukraine, Moldova, Latvia, Turkmenistan and Estonia and, to a lesser extent, the other countries that were once constituent republics...
from there. In 2006 she began work on a master's degree in political marketing at the National School of Administration and Political Science of Bucharest
National School of Administration and Political Science of Bucharest
The National School of Administration and Political Science of Bucharest is a public University in Bucharest, Romania, founded in 1991.SNSPA is a public institution of higher education and research which was established in 1991 as a postgraduate teaching institution, incorporating in its...
, and that year she also began a doctorate at the Transylvania University of Braşov
Transylvania University of Brasov
Transylvania University is a state institution of higher education in Braşov, Romania which, by "offering education, scientific research and the number of students is one of the great universities of Romania, the representative of the region and university 7 Center" .It has sixteen faculties, a...
. She has also pursued studies in Austria
Austria
Austria , officially the Republic of Austria , is a landlocked country of roughly 8.4 million people in Central Europe. It is bordered by the Czech Republic and Germany to the north, Slovakia and Hungary to the east, Slovenia and Italy to the south, and Switzerland and Liechtenstein to the...
and in the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
. From 1999 to 2000, she worked as a public relations consultant for Tofan Grup, an automobile tyre distributor. She was then a parliamentary expert at the Romanian Senate from 2000 to 2004, and from 2000 to 2006 was an associated professor at Transylvania University and at the Romanian-German University of Sibiu.
Tatarcan began her political career in 2000, as an adviser to the president of the National Council of the National Liberal Party
National Liberal Party (Romania)
The National Liberal Party , abbreviated to PNL, is a centre-right liberal party in Romania. It is the third-largest party in the Romanian Parliament, with 53 seats in the Chamber of Deputies and 22 in the Senate: behind the centre-right Democratic Liberal Party and the centre-left Social...
(PNL). In 2002, she moved on to become an adviser to PNL President Theodor Stolojan
Theodor Stolojan
Theodor Dumitru Stolojan is a Romanian politician. An economist by training, he is a leader of the Democratic-Liberal Party. He previously served as Prime minister of Romania from September 1991 to November 1992. He and his wife Elena have a son, Vlad Stolojan, and a daughter, Ada Palea...
, which she remained until 2004. That year, which saw her elected
Romanian legislative election, 2004
The Romanian legislative election of 2004 was held on 28 November 2004. 137 seats in the Senate of Romania and 314 seats in the Chamber of Deputies were up for election.The 2004 legislative election was held simultaneously with the presidential election...
to Parliament, she joined the PNL's national leadership council, remaining until 2006. After being ejected from the PNL, she and fellow party dissidents Valeriu Stoica
Valeriu Stoica
Valeriu Stoica is a Romanian politician and academic. A professor of civil law at the University of Bucharest, he became a member of the National Liberal Party in 1990, and was first vice-president of the party between 1997 and 2001 and president between 2001 and 2002...
and Cristian Boureanu
Cristian Boureanu
Cristian Alexandru Boureanu is a Romanian businessman and politician. A member of the Democratic Liberal Party , he has been a member of the Romanian Chamber of Deputies for Argeş County since 2004....
joined the Stolojan-founded Liberal Democratic Party
Liberal Democratic Party (Romania)
The Liberal Democratic Party was a political party in Romania, formed in December 2006 as a breakaway group from the National Liberal Party...
(PLD), serving as its vice president from March until December 2007. At that point, the party merged with the Democratic Party and Turcan became vice president of the new formation, the PD-L. She was re-elected
Romanian legislative election, 2008
Legislative elections were held in Romania on November 30, 2008. The Democratic Liberal Party won most seats in both the Chamber of Deputies and the Senate, although the alliance headed by the Social Democratic Party won a fractionally higher vote share.-Electoral System:President Traian Băsescu...
in 2008. While in the Chamber, she has served on several committees, and has twice been president of the Committee on Culture, Arts and Mass Media (2005-2006; since 2008).
Turcan has worked with civil society groups focusing on mass media, free expression, human rights and health. She has co-authored an English-Russian-Romanian dictionary of economic terms, as well as the book Integrare şi politică fiscală europeană ("Integration and European Fiscal Policy"). Additionally, she has published studies on European integration
European integration
European integration is the process of industrial, political, legal, economic integration of states wholly or partially in Europe...
and public relations.
During her career in politics, Turcan has been the subject of some controversy. After Călin Popescu-Tăriceanu
Calin Popescu-Tariceanu
Călin Constantin Anton Popescu-Tăriceanu is a Romanian politician. He was the Prime Minister of Romania between 29 December 2004 and 22 December 2008...
became PNL President and Prime Minister of Romania
Prime Minister of Romania
The Prime Minister of Romania is the head of the Government of Romania. Initially, the office was styled President of the Council of Ministers , when the term "Government" included more than the Cabinet, and the Cabinet was called The Council of Ministers...
in 2004, her public criticisms of the party began to increase, so that in July 2006, the party gave her a warning, to which she responded that she would continue making similar statements. She kept her word, and the party expelled her that September. Continuing to attack Tăriceanu, she was at the forefront of a group of PD-L deputies who in March 2008 asked prosecutors to investigate the prime minister for abuse of office and corruption in his attempts to impose an automobile tax (he has links to the industry), and, a year later, before Tăriceanu lost the PNL presidency, declared a united right-wing party encompassing the PD-L and the PNL could be formed if he and a few people around him left the PNL. Shortly after her expulsion, she complained of "a trio monopolising the party, made up of Tăriceanu, Olteanu
Bogdan Olteanu
Bogdan Olteanu is a Romanian politician and lawyer. He was the president of the Chamber of Deputies between 2006 and 2008....
and Orban
Ludovic Orban
Ludovic Orban is a Romanian engineer and politician. A member of the National Liberal Party , he was Minister of Transport from April 2007 to December 2008 in the second Călin Popescu-Tăriceanu cabinet. He has also been a member of the Romanian Chamber of Deputies for Bucharest since 2008.He and...
, which has practically confiscated it and eliminates anyone who dares share a point of view different from theirs". By contrast, she has been a public supporter of Băsescu, whom she notes shares the PD-L's objectives, and whose suspension
Romanian presidential impeachment referendum, 2007
The Romanian presidential impeachment referendum of 2007 was conducted in order to determine whether the president of Romania Traian Băsescu should be forced to step down.On April 19, 2007 the Romanian parliament suspended Băsescu...
she called "a serious abuse". She also predicted that current PNL leader Crin Antonescu
Crin Antonescu
George-Crin-Laurenţiu Antonescu is a Romanian politician, currently serving as President of the National Liberal Party . He was a candidate for the Romanian Presidential Elections of 2009. He is a member of the Senate, his election having taken place during the 2008 legislative election...
would lose to Băsescu at the 2009 election
Romanian presidential election, 2009
The first round of 2009 Romanian presidential elections was held in Romania on 22 November and a run-off round between Traian Băsescu and Mircea Geoană was held on 6 December 2009. Although most exit polls favored Geoană in the runoff, the authorities declared Băsescu the narrow victor with 50.33%...
and noted the party risked marginalisation if it continued its anti-Băsescu strategy. Turcan supports modifying the Constitution
Constitution of Romania
The 1991 Constitution of Romania, adopted on 21 November 1991, voted in the referendum of 8 December 1991 and introduced on the same day, is the current fundamental law that establishes the structure of the government of Romania, the rights and obligations of the country's citizens, and its mode...
in order to enhance presidential powers to those found in a consolidated semi-presidential system
Semi-presidential system
The semi-presidential system is a system of government in which a president and a prime minister are both active participants in the day-to-day administration of the state...
.