Social Democrats win capital city in Romania's local elections

social 

Democratic candidate Gabriela Firea would undoubtedly become the first woman mayor in the Romanian capital city of Bucharest, after winning by a large margin in the local elections on Sunday.

Three independent exit polls showed that Firea, candidate of a center-left electoral alliance led by the Social Democrat Party, won some 42 percent of the votes, followed by challenger Nicusor Dan of the newly formed Save Bucharest Union with up to 30 percent. Catalin Predoiu, Candidate of the second biggest party, the National Liberal Party, only got 13 percent.

Meanwhile, the Social Democrats won elections in five of Bucharest's six districts, according to exit polls.

Voter turnout in the local elections of Sunday on polls closing at 21:00 local time stood at 48.27 percent, according to data announced by the Central Electoral Bureau.

The elections were organized in a single round, so the winners, no matter how many votes they received, are elected mayors.

The Bucharest mayor is the most important position in the country's local administration, as the capital city has o population of more than 2 million, over one-tenth of the country's total.

Firea, 43, is a former journalist and TV presenter who became a senator in the parliament in 2012. Since February 2015, she has been leading the local branch of the Social Democrat Party.

Romania held local elections on Sunday to elect mayors and local councils of communes, towns and cities, as well as the 41 county councils for the next four-year mandates.

source : xinhua