Klaus Werner Iohannis (Romanian pronunciation: [ˈkla.

us joˈhanis], German: [ˈklaʊ̯s joˈhanɪs]; also

spelled Johannis; born 13 June 1959) is the current President of Romania. He became leader of
the National Liberal Party in 2014, after having served as leader of the Democratic Forum of
Germans in Romania from 2001 to 2013. Iohannis was a physics teacher and a school inspector
before entering full-time politics.
Iohannis was first elected mayor of the city of Sibiu 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, accepting an invitation
from Liberal leader Crin Antonescu, and was immediately elected the party's First Vice President,
becoming the party's President the following year.
In October 2009, four of the five political groups in the Parliament, excluding the Democratic Liberal
Party 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.[3] He was again the candidate for Prime Minister of the National
Liberal Party and the Social Democratic Party in the elections in the same year.[4]
Iohannis is the first Romanian president to come from an ethnic minority.[5] He is a Transylvanian
Saxon, part of Romania's German minority which settled in Transylvania in the 12th century. Thus,
he is the fourth president of German origin from Eastern Europe in the post-communist period,
after Rudolf Schuster (Slovakia) and Ferenc Mádl and Pál Schmitt (Hungary).[6] He is also the first
president since the Romanian Revolution with no past ties to Communism.[7]

Contents
[hide]

 1Personal and professional life

 2Political career
o 2.1Mayor of Sibiu
o 2.2Candidacy for the Prime Minister of Romania
o 2.3In the National Liberal Party
o 2.4Candidacy for the President of Romania
o 2.5President of Romania
 2.5.1International trips as President
 3Political positions
o 3.1Unification of Romania and Moldova
o 3.2Autonomy of Hungarian community
o 3.3Anticorruption
o 3.4LGBT rights
 4Criticism
 5Honours
o 5.1National honours
o 5.2Foreign honours
 6Books
 7References
 8External links

Personal and professional life[edit]

Born in the historic centre of Sibiu to a Transylvanian Saxon family, Klaus Iohannis is the eldest child
of Susanne and Gustav Heinz Johannis. He has a younger sister, Krista Johannis (born 1963).[8] His
father worked as a technician at an enterprise, while his mother was a nurse.[9] Both his parents as
well as his sister emigrated from their native Sibiu (German: Hermannstadt) to Würzburg in Germany
in 1992, acquiring citizenship there under the right of return granted by German nationality
law,[10][11] as most other Transylvanian Saxons after the fall of the Iron Curtain. However, he chose to
live and work in Romania.[12] As of 2014, his parents, sister and a niece live in Würzburg.[13] Iohannis
has stated that his family settled in Transylvania in present-day Romania 850 years ago.[14] After
graduating from the Faculty of Physics of the Babeș-Bolyai University in Cluj-Napoca in 1983,
Iohannis worked as a high school physics teacher at various schools and colleges in Sibiu, including,
from 1989 to 1997, the Samuel von Brukenthal Gymnasiumin Sibiu, the oldest German-speaking
school in Romania. From 1997 to 1999, he was Deputy General School Inspector of Sibiu County,
and from 1999 until his election as mayor in 2000, he was the General School Inspector, head of
public schools in the county.
Iohannis is fluent in German and Romanian at a native level and also speaks English. The original
spelling of his name (which is German) is Johannis, but the name was registered by a Romanian
official as Iohannis on his birth certificate[15] and he has used both spellings interchangeably.[16] In
1989, he married ethnic Romanian Carmen Lăzurcă, an English teacher at the Gheorghe Lazăr
National College in Sibiu.[17][18] They have no children.
Iohannis is a member of the Evangelical Church of Augustan Confession in Romania, the German-
speaking Lutheran church in Transylvania.[19]

Political career[edit]
He joined the Democratic Forum of Germans in Romania (FDGR) in 1990, and served as a member
of its board of education in Transylvania from 1997, and a member of the local party board in Sibiu
from 1998. In 2001, he was elected President of the Democratic Forum of Germans in Romania.

Mayor of Sibiu[edit]

Iohannis as Mayor of Sibiu, May 2005

In 2000, the Democratic Forum of Germans in Romania in Sibiu decided to back him as a candidate
for mayor. Despite the fact that Sibiu's German minority had shrunken to a mere 1.6%, Iohannis was
elected with 69.18% of the votes and has won three re-elections in a row, getting some of the largest
electoral scores in the country: 88.7% of the vote in 2004, and 87.4% in 2008. He is the first ethnic
German mayor of a Romanian city since Albert Dörr, who served from 1940 to 1945. The small
German minority is popular in Romania, where they are often viewed as hard-working, precise and
uncompromising. Many Romanians also remember that the country experienced some of its best
moments under German kings over a century ago.[11]
Throughout his tenure as mayor, he has worked to restore the town's infrastructure and to tighten
the city administration. Iohannis is also widely credited with turning the city into one of Romania's
most popular tourist destinations thanks to the extensive renovation of the old downtown.[20]During
his first term, Iohannis worked with a city council that had a social democrat majority.[citation needed] Since
2004, during his second and third terms, his own party, FDGR, had the majority. Since 2008, FDGR
has 14 out of 23 councilors, PDL has 4, PSD has 3, and PNL has 2.[21]
Iohannis established contacts with foreign officials and investors. Sibiu was declared the European
Capital of Culture of 2007, along with Luxembourg (the bearer of the distinction in 1995).[clarification
needed]
Luxembourg chose to share this honourable status with Sibiu due to the fact that many of the
Transylvanian Saxons emigrated in the 12th century to Transylvania from the area where
Luxembourg is today.[22] Sibiu, or Hermannstadt in German, was built by the Transylvanian Saxons,
was for many centuries the cultural centre of that group, and was a predominantly German-speaking
city until the mid 20th century. Many Germans left the city after World War II, and especially in 1990,
within months of the fall of the Iron Curtain.
On 7 November 2005 Iohannis was nominated as the "Personality of the Year for a European
Romania" (Romanian: Personalitatea anului pentru o Românie europeană) by the Eurolink – House
of Europe organization.[23]

Candidacy for the Prime Minister of Romania[edit]

On 14 October 2009 the leaders of the opposition parliamentary groups (the National Liberal Party,
the Social Democratic Party, the Democratic Union of Hungarians in Romania, and the group of
smaller ethnic minorities), proposed Iohannis as a candidate for Prime Minister of Romania, after the
government of Prime Minister Emil Boc fell a day before as a result of a motion of no confidence in
the Parliament. Coming from outside the national-level politics of Romania, Iohannis has the image
of an independent politician,[24] although his party has consistently allied itself with, and Iohannis has
campaigned in the latest European Parliament elections for the National Liberal Party. The National
Liberal Party (PNL), the Social Democratic Party (PSD), the Democratic Union of Hungarians in
Romania (UDMR), and the group of small ethnic minorities in the Parliament subsumed Iohannis as
their common candidate for Prime Minister of an interim government.[25] On 14 October Klaus
Iohannis confirmed acceptance of his candidacy. However, on 15 October the President Traian
Băsescu nominated Lucian Croitoru, a top Romanian economist, as Prime Minister, and charged the
latter with forming the country's next government.
After the second round of talks, a day before Croitoru's nomination, Băsescu noted: "Some parties
have proposed Klaus Iohannis. I would like you to know that I have not rejected the possibility for
him to become Prime Minister in the condition that my options would be directed towards other
[national unity government] solutions. But I have rejected such a proposal because it comes from
PSD or another party [PNL]", referring to his alleged constraint to consider a proposal of the largest
party (PDL), constraint disputed by the other parties.[26][27] The opposition criticized the President for
not designating Iohannis. Social Democrat leader Mircea Geoană accused Băsescu of trying to
influence the upcoming presidential elections by having them organised by a sympathetic
government.[28][29] Crin Antonescu, the leader of the National Liberals, vowed his party would derail
other nominations but Iohannis'.[28] After the nomination of Croitoru, Antonescu, a candidate in the
presidential election, stated that he would nominate Iohannis as Prime Minister if elected
President.[30] Three days later, on 18 October Geoană suggested Antonescu was trying to use
Iohannis as an "electoral agent" for Antonescu's bid for president. In response, Antonescu told the
press that Iohannis "is not the type of person that would let himself being used".[31] Geoană and PSD
leadership has held a second meeting with Iohannis in Bucharest in the evening of 18 October.
UDMR, which the previous day announced it would also attend, declared in the morning that all their
leaders are not in the city. PNL was present at the meeting by lower level representatives, after
Antonescu announced in the morning he is on campaign in Cluj-Napoca.[32] On 21 October the
Parliament adopted with 252 votes for (of PSD, PNL, UDMR and minorities groups) and 2 against a
declaration requesting the President to nominate Iohannis as Prime Minister.[33][34]

In the National Liberal Party[edit]

On 20 February 2013, Klaus Iohannis joined the PNL, announcing this during a press conference
with Crin Antonescu. At a PNL extraordinary congress, he was elected First Vice President of the
Party. In the meeting of 28 June 2014, he was elected President of the PNL with 95% of the votes.

Candidacy for the President of Romania[edit]

Klaus Iohannis and his counter candidate Victor Ponta at a TV debate on Realitatea TV, 11 November 2014

In 2009, Iohannis had stated that he might possibly run for the office of President of Romania,
although not in 2009.[35] Former Prime Minister Călin Popescu-Tăriceanu had said on 27 October
2009 and again on 23 April 2010 that he would like to see Iohannis become President of Romania.[36]
PNL and PDL started in the summer of 2014 procedures to strengthen the political right. The two
parties will eventually merge under the name PNL, but went for elections in an alliance: the Christian
Liberal Alliance (Romanian: Alianța Creștin-Liberală). On 11 August the alliance chose Iohannis as
its candidate for the presidential election in November[37] and so he was registered as an official
presidential candidate. He received 30.37% of the votes in the first round.
At the second round on 16 November he was elected President of Romania with 54.43% of the
votes.

President of Romania[edit]

Presidential styles of
Klaus Iohannis

Reference style Președintele (President)

Spoken style Președintele (President)

 Alternative style Domnia Sa/Excelența Sa (His Excellency)

U.S. Secretary of State Rex Tillerson and Klaus Iohannis before their bilateral meeting at the U.S. Department
of State in Washington, D.C., on 9 June 2017
Iohannis took office on 21 December, when Traian Băsescu's term ended. His presidential campaign
focused on fighting corruption and on improving the justice system.[38] Iohannis is also a supporter of
a strongly pro-Western foreign policy.[39] Regarding the unification of the Republic of Moldova with
Romania, much discussed in the electoral campaign, Iohannis stated that "is something that only
Bucharest can offer and only Chișinău can accept", and this "special relationship must be cultivated
and enhanced especially by us [Romanian state]".[40][41] Upon taking office, Iohannis suspended his
membership in the National Liberal Party; the Romanian constitution does not allow the president to
be a member of a political party during his tenure.
A heavily disputed draft law proposed by Nicolae Paun, leader of the Party of the Roma, regarding
the amnesty of some misdemeanors and the pardoning of certain penalties was rejected by the
Chamber of Deputies at the initiative of Klaus Iohannis and the party he led,[42] after PNL asked the
Judiciary Committee 17 times to reject the draft law.[43]
The collaboration with socialist Prime Minister Victor Ponta was praised by both sides at the start of
the mandate, but deteriorated thereafter once with foreign visits of the Head of the Executive,
without informing the President, but especially with the criminal prosecution of Victor Ponta for 22
alleged corruption charges, prompting Iohannis to demand his resignation from the head of the
Government.[44] Relations with Parliament went similarly. Iohannis criticized the Parliament for
defending MPs by rejecting the requests of the National Anticorruption Directorate for lifting
their immunity, as in the case of PSD senator Dan Șova or Prime Minister Victor Ponta.[45]Regarding
the judicial system, Klaus Iohannis pleads for a sustained fight against corruption. Likewise, Iohannis
expressed dissatisfaction with attempted amendments to the Penal Code.[46] Since coming into office,
President Klaus Iohannis has made a habit to hold consultations with parliamentary parties. The first
round of consultations took place on 12 January, the purpose of these discussions being a political
agreement that would ensure, by 2017, a minimum threshold of 2% of GDP for the Ministry of
Defence, agreement signed by all parties.[47] The second round of consultations focused on the
legislative priorities of the parliamentary session: voting in diaspora, financing electoral campaigns
and parties and lifting parliamentary immunity. Because the Parliament has not implemented the
commitments made on 28 January, Iohannis has organised another series of consultations on the
state of electoral laws,[48] but also on rejection of Justice requests for approval of arrest or
prosecution of MPs. The topics of other meetings between the president and parties focused on
the Big Brother law package and the national defense strategy.[49]
International trips as President[edit]

Date Country City Reason

10 Talks with President François Hollande on

February France Paris French–Romanian relations, combating
2015 terrorism and Ukraine[50]
 25 Talks with pro-European parties on bilateral
February Moldova Chișinău relations and the process of European
2015 integration of Moldova[51]

Talks with German Chancellor Angela

26
Merkel on the situation in Ukraine,
February Germany Berlin
investments, European projects and
2015
strengthening the rule of law[52]

Talks with President Bronisław

12 March
Poland Warsaw Komorowski on Ukraine, NATO and Moldova[53
2015 ]

14–17 Meeting with Romanian community in Milan

Italy Milan, Rome
May 2015 and Pope Francis[54]

21 May
Latvia Riga Eastern Partnership Summit[55]
2015

Meeting with President Kolinda Grabar-

15–16
Croatia Zagreb Kitarović and President of the Sabor Josip
June 2015
Leko[56]

Meeting with King Felipe VI, Prime

12–13 July
Spain Madrid Minister Mariano Rajoy and Romanian
2015
community representatives[57][58]

Represented Romania at the United

23–30 New York Nations General Assembly from 26 to 29
United
Septembe City, Washington September. Met with the United States
States
r 2015 , D.C. President Barack Obama and Vice-
President Joe Biden [59]
 6–11
Meeting with President Reuven Rivlin and
March Israel Jerusalem
Knesset Speaker Yuli-Yoel Edelstein[60]
2016

Talks with President Recep Tayyip

23 March
Turkey Ankara Erdoğan on security issues and refugee
2016
crisis[61]

7 June Luxembour Reception at Neumünster Abbey in honor of

Luxembourg City
2016 g the Duke and Duchess of Luxembourg[62]

8–9 July
Poland Warsaw NATO Summit[63]
2016

24–25
Official visit to the Council of Europe, as well
January France Strasbourg
as the European Court of Human Rights[64]
2017

Joint press conference with United States

19 June United
Washington D.C. President Donald Trump regarding terrorism in
2017 States
Qatar

Political positions[edit]
Unification of Romania and Moldova[edit]
Regarding the unification of Romania and Moldova, Klaus Iohannis declared during the 2014
presidential campaign that the unification is something that only Bucharest can provide and
only Chișinău can accept. "If Moldovan citizens want the unification with Romania, then nobody can
stop them", stated Klaus Iohannis.[65] After election, his position mitigated, stressing that, at the
moment, Romania should support Moldova to consolidate its pro-European path.[66] President Klaus
Iohannis said that a possible unification of Romania and Moldova could be discussed at the moment
things are going well and stable in the two countries.[67][68]

Autonomy of Hungarian community[edit]

In March 2017, a sub-group of the ethnically Hungarian Székely community in southeastern
Transylvania launched a petition demanding autonomy for their region, arguing for political and
administrative self-rule, their own elected president and flag, as well as the recognition of Hungarian
as an official language next to Romanian.[69] Iohannis, on a visit to the region in July, cautioned
against decentralization and the creation of regions based on the ethnic origin of residents.[70] He
argued for more and improved cooperation between Romanians and Hungarians "as the only
solution for us" instead, stressing local administrative reforms and developing the region.[71]

Anticorruption[edit]
President Klaus Iohannis is a supporter of the fight against corruption in Romania. Since coming to
power in November 2014, has sent several messages of support to prosecutors investigating
sensitive cases against politicians accused of corruption. Making one of its important position was in
February 25, 2016 at the annual meeting of the National Anticorruption Directorate: “From year to
year the work of the National Anticorruption Directorate has become more effective as the number of
cases investigated and complexity, as well as final decisions on confiscation and recovery of
property from crime. You are a model of functional institution and created a performance standard.
Through the work and achievements, you've earned the appreciation of the Romanian citizens who
want to live in a just society, in a country without corruption, the institutions, elect to represent them
and those who perform public functions are actually serving the people. The results obtained by you
in fighting corruption, appreciated and beyond Romania's borders are a guarantee that the process
of strengthening democracy and the rule of law in Romania are on track. I am convinced that we will
be increasingly more powerful in applying the constitutional principle that nobody is above the law
and to align our established practice in countries with democracies that put the citizen at the center
of any policy”, stated Klaus Iohannis.[72]
He has rejected demands for the suspension of the head of Romania's National Anticorruption
Directorate (DNA), Laura Codruta Kovesi.[73][74]

LGBT rights[edit]
In terms of LGBT rights and recognition of same-sex unions in Romania, Iohannis is reticent:[75]
Romanian society is not yet ready for a definite answer. I won't give an answer but as a president I
am willing to open up the issue for discussion. We have to accept that any minority has rights and
that a majority is strong when they protect the minority.

— Iohannis said in a debate with bloggers[76]

However, he is pleading for the acceptance of differences and diversity: "nobody should be
persecuted because they belong to a different group or they are different".[75]
Regarding the initiative to amend Article 48 of the Constitution (prohibition of gay marriage) started
by the Coalition for Family (Romanian: Coaliția pentru Familie), Klaus Iohannis reiterated the
concepts of tolerance and accepting one another.[77] "It is wrong to give obedience or walk the path of
religious fanaticism and ultimatum solicitations. I do not believe in them and do not support them. I
believe in tolerance, trust and openness to other", said Iohannis in a press conference.[78] Thus,
Iohannis is the first top official in the country to open the discussion about same-sex
marriages.[79] His reaction was praised by international media, including The Washington
Post,[80][81] while religious and conservative organizations in Romania have criticized his position on
LGBT rights.

Criticism[edit]
In February 2016, the National Agency for Fiscal Administration (ANAF) sent a notice of evacuation
of the headquarters of two TV stations owned by Dan Voiculescu, sentenced in August 2014 to 10
years imprisonment in a corruption case with 60 million euros worth of prejudice.[82] In this context,
Klaus Iohannis stated that ANAF approach in Antena TV Groupcase is "hasty", "inappropriate" and
that "freedom of expression in media can not be suppressed for trivial administrative reasons".[83] His
position was met with a wave of criticism from supporters and public figures.[84][85] On the same note,
Iohannis stated that union with Moldova is "a less serious approach" in the context of
the Transnistrian problem, of differences between Romania and Moldova regarding economic
stability and fighting corruption, and can be discussed when things are stable in both
countries.[86] The statement sparked indignation among unionists[67] who accused him of demagogy,
considering that during the electoral campaign of 2014 he expressed a favorable position on the
issue.[87]