Vlad Filat Facts for Kids

"Filat" redirects here. For other uses, see Filat (disambiguation).

Quick facts for kids Vlad Filat
Filat in 2023

8th Prime Minister of Moldova
In office 25 September 2009 – 25 April 2013
President	Mihai Ghimpu (acting) Himself (acting) Marian Lupu (acting) Nicolae Timofti
Deputy	See list Iurie Leancă Valeriu Lazăr Victor Osipov Ion Negrei Eugen Carpov Mihai Moldovanu
Preceded by	Vitalie Pîrlog (acting)
Succeeded by	Iurie Leancă
Acting President of Moldova
In office 28 December 2010 – 30 December 2010
Prime Minister	Himself
Preceded by	Mihai Ghimpu (acting)
Succeeded by	Marian Lupu (acting)
President of the Liberal Democratic Party
Incumbent
Assumed office 2 July 2023
Preceded by	Iulian David (acting)
In office 16 August 2020 – 29 April 2021
Preceded by	Tudor Deliu
Succeeded by	Iulian David (acting)
In office 8 December 2007 – 27 May 2016
Succeeded by	Viorel Cibotaru
Minister of State
In office 12 March 1999 – 21 December 1999
President	Petru Lucinschi
Prime Minister	Ion Sturza
Preceded by	Nicolae Cernomaz
Succeeded by	Victor Bodiu (2009)
Member of the Moldovan Parliament
In office 9 December 2014 – 15 December 2016
Succeeded by	Simion Grișciuc
Parliamentary group	Liberal Democratic Party
In office 24 December 2010 – 14 February 2011
Succeeded by	Elena Frumosu
Parliamentary group	Liberal Democratic Party
In office 17 March 2005 – 25 September 2009
Succeeded by	Ivan Ionaș
Parliamentary group	Democratic Moldova Electoral Bloc Democratic Party Liberal Democratic Party

Personal details
Born	Vladimir Filat (1969-05-06) 6 May 1969 (age 56) Lăpușna, Moldavian SSR, Soviet Union (now Moldova)
Citizenship	Moldova Romania
Political party	Democratic Party (1997–2007) Liberal Democratic Party (2007–2016), (2020–present)
Other political affiliations	Alliance for Democracy and Reforms (1998–1999) Alliance for European Integration (2009–present)
Spouses	Sanda Filat (Divorced 2012) Angela Gonța (2014–2016)
Children	3
Alma mater	University of Iași

Vladimir Filat (born May 6, 1969), often called Vlad Filat, is a Moldovan businessman and politician. He founded the Liberal Democratic Party of Moldova. He served as the Prime Minister of Moldova from September 25, 2009, to April 25, 2013. He was also the acting interim president of Moldova for a short time in 2010.

Later, Filat was found guilty of accepting bribes. He was released from jail in December 2019, which was six years earlier than his original sentence.

Early Life and Education
Business Career
Political Beginnings
Elections and Alliances
Prime Minister of Moldova
Legal Issues
Honours and Awards
Personal Life
Gallery
See also

Early Life and Education

Vlad Filat was born on May 6, 1969. His parents are Maria and Vasile Filat. He grew up in Lăpușna, a village in what was then the Moldavian Soviet Socialist Republic. He has two sisters, Ala and Valentina, and a brother, Ion.

In 1986, he finished high school in his hometown. From 1986 to 1987, he worked at the school radio station. He then served in the Soviet Army from 1987 to 1989. He was part of the KGB's Soviet Border Troops.

From 1989 to 1990, he studied at the Cooperation College in Chișinău. After that, he studied law at the University of Iași from 1990 to 1994. While studying, he led the "League of students from Bessarabia in Romania." This group was for Moldovan students in Romania. He met his first wife, Sanda, in 1991 and they married soon after.

Business Career

Between 1994 and 1998, Vlad Filat started and managed several businesses in Romania. He was the general director of "RoMold Trading SRL" in Iași from 1994 to 1997. He also served as the president of the Administrative Council for "Dosoftei" company in Iași from 1997 to 1998.

Political Beginnings

Filat became a member of the Democratic Party of Moldova (PDM) in 1997. He stayed with the party for ten years. In 1998, he returned to Moldova. He was appointed general director of the Department of Privatization and State Property Administration. This department was part of the Ministry of Economy and Reform.

He served as a State minister in the Ion Sturza government from March 1999 to November 1999. In 2000, Filat was elected vice-president of the Democratic Party. In the 2005 parliamentary election, he became a member of the Moldovan Parliament.

He ran for Mayor of Chișinău in the 2007 local election. He received 8.32% of the votes. In September 2007, he left the Democratic Party. Since December 2007, Filat has been the president of the Liberal Democratic Party of Moldova.

Elections and Alliances

In the April 2009 parliamentary election, his party won 15 seats in parliament. In the July 2009 parliamentary election, the PLDM became the second-largest party. They won 18 seats.

After the July 2009 election, Vlad Filat joined other political leaders. They signed the agreement for the Alliance For European Integration (AIE) on August 8, 2009. This alliance aimed to bring Moldova closer to Europe. By the end of August 2009, Filat became the AIE's choice for Prime Minister of Moldova.

Prime Minister of Moldova

On September 17, 2009, the Constitutional Court of Moldova confirmed that Mihai Ghimpu could nominate a prime minister. On the same day, Ghimpu officially nominated Filat for the role. The parliament approved a new government structure.

The Alliance for European Integration voted to approve the new government. This government was led by Prime Minister Vladimir Filat. This happened at a meeting on September 25, 2009.

On March 8, 2013, Filat was removed from his position. This happened after accusations of corruption and misusing his power. However, President Nicolae Timofti said that government members should continue their duties until a new government was formed.

On April 10, 2013, the President nominated Vlad Filat again for prime minister. But on April 22, 2013, the Constitutional Court ruled this was against the law. They stated that a prime minister removed due to corruption suspicions could not serve again. The president then appointed Iurie Leancă as acting prime minister on April 25, 2013.

Legal Issues

On October 15, 2015, Filat's special protection as a politician was removed. He was then arrested in parliament. He was investigated in connection with a large bank fraud case in Moldova from 2014. He was accused of taking money from a businessman.

Filat has always said he did nothing wrong. He believes the accusations against him were for political reasons.

On June 27, 2016, Vlad Filat was sentenced to nine years in prison. He was released from prison early in December 2019.

In February 2019, an investigation in the UK found that his son had paid a large sum for an apartment and a car. His son had no registered income in the UK. Because of this, three of his son's bank accounts were frozen.

Honours and Awards

Vlad Filat has received several important awards:

Moldova – Order of the Republic (December 2013)
Romania – Grand Cross of the National Order of Faithful Service (November 25, 2014)
Georgia – Order of Excellence (November 2013)