Romania's President Jonny has decided to resign amid an impeachment crisis

Romania's liberal president Iohannis has announced he will formally resign in the next few days.

According to Xinhua News Agency, Klaus Iohannis announced his resignation from the presidency of Romania on Monday (February 10) at a press conference at the presidential palace. He will leave office on Wednesday.

The Standing Committee of the two houses of the Romanian Parliament decided early Monday to meet on Tuesday (11) to discuss the impeachment of the president. Iohannis said he had decided to resign in order to spare Romania and its people from the effects of the crisis.

According to Romania's constitution, the current president of the Senate, Ilie Bolojan, will serve as interim president until another presidential election is held in May.

Romania's Supreme Court annulled last December's presidential election and set a new one for May, Reuters reported. Iohannis' second term was due to end at the end of December, but the Constitutional Court ruled that he could stay on until a new leader was elected.

In recent weeks, however, Iohannis has come under increased pressure from opposition parties and the public, who say his continued tenure is illegitimate. Three far-right opposition parties in parliament had earlier proposed a motion to impeach Iohannis.

Analysts believe that some mainstream pro-European party lawmakers may vote in favor of the far-right impeachment motion.

Iohannis has been accused of suppressing freedom of speech and press freedom, and his approval ratings have been falling since April 2021.

Calin Georgescu, a little-known far-right critic of NATO, won a controversial election last year amid allegations of Russian interference. But polls show his support has nearly doubled.