PNL first vice-president Ciprian Ciucu said that Marcel Ciolacu refused Ilie Bolojan's candidacy in the presidential elections.

PNL first vice-president, Ciprian Ciucu, said on Facebook that PSD, led by Marcel Ciolacu, refused the proposal that Ilie Bolojan should run in the presidential elections. Bolojan chose not to run to avoid government instability in a complicated international context. Ciucu is the first PNL leader to publicly admit that Ciolacu prevented Bolojan's nomination, preferring Crin Antonescu. A recent poll suggests that a majority of respondents believe Bolojan would have been a better candidate.