Constitutional Court of Romania facts for kids

The Constitutional Court of Romania (Romanian: Curtea Constituțională a României) is a special court in Romania. Its main job is to check if the laws, rules, and decisions made by Romanian authorities follow the Constitution. Think of the Constitution as the country's most important rulebook.

The Court has nine members, called judges. Each judge serves for nine years and cannot serve again. Three judges are chosen by the President, three by the Senate, and three by the Chamber of Deputies. Every three years, three new judges join the Court.

Quick facts for kids Constitutional Court of Romania
Curtea Constituțională a României
Established	1992
Location	Palace of the Parliament, Bucharest
Composition method	Senate selection (3 members) Chamber of Deputies selection (3 members) President selection (3 members)
Authorized by	Constitution
Judge term length	9 years
Number of positions	9
Website	http://www.ccr.ro/
President of the Constitutional Court of Romania
Currently	Marian Enache
Since	2022
Lead position ends	2025

What the Constitutional Court Does

The Constitutional Court has several important jobs, as explained in Article 146 of the Constitution. These jobs help make sure Romania's government follows its own rules.

Checking Laws and Rules

• The Court checks if new laws are constitutional before they become official. This can happen if the President, Parliament, Government, or a group of lawmakers asks them to.
• It also checks the rules of how Parliament works.
• If a regular court case raises a question about whether a law is constitutional, the Constitutional Court steps in to decide.

Protecting Elections and the President

• The Court makes sure the election for the President of Romania is fair and confirms the results.
• It checks if there's a reason for someone to temporarily take over the President's job.
• The Court gives advice if there's a proposal to temporarily remove the President from office.
• It also makes sure that public votes (referendums) are held correctly and confirms their results.

Other Important Roles

• The Court checks if citizens who want to propose new laws follow all the rules.
• It decides if a political party is acting against the Constitution.
• The Court also carries out other duties given to it by special laws.

Important Moments

The Constitutional Court has been involved in many key events in Romania's history. Here are some recent examples:

• October 5, 2024: The Court decided that a candidate, Diana Șoșoacă, could not run in the 2024 Romanian presidential election. The Court stated her public actions went against Romania's constitutional ties to Euro-Atlantic groups.
• November 28, 2024: The Court ordered a recount of votes from the presidential election held on November 24.
• December 2, 2024: The Court officially approved the results of the first round of the presidential election.
• December 6, 2024: The Court later canceled the results of the first round of the presidential election.
• March 11, 2025: The Court decided that an independent candidate, Călin Georgescu, could not run in the postponed 2025 Romanian presidential election after facing legal issues.
• May 22, 2025: The Court officially approved the results of the 2025 Romanian presidential election, confirming Nicușor Dan as the new President of Romania.

Who Are the Members?

The Constitutional Court has a specific structure with judges appointed by different parts of the government.

Current Judges

Court History

The Constitutional Court was created in 1992. This timeline shows who has been a member of the Court over the years.

Past Presidents of the Court

Here are the people who have served as the President of the Constitutional Court since it was founded:

• Vasile Gionea (1992–1995)
• Ioan Muraru (1995–1998)
• Lucian Mihai (1998–2001)
• Nicolae Popa (2001–2004)
• Ioan Vida (2004–2010)
• Augustin Zegrean (2010–2016)
• Valer Dorneanu (2016–2022)
• Marian Enache (2022–2025)

See also

In Spanish: Corte Constitucional de Rumania para niños

• Judiciary of Romania
• High Court of Cassation and Justice
• Rule of law
• Rule According to Higher Law