Romania's president says he won't name Muslim woman to be PM

Published December 27, 2016

In this photo taken May 20, 2015, Sevil Shhaideh, 52, stands at the Romanian presidency before being sworn in as regional development minister in Bucharest, Romania. Liviu Dragnea, chairman of Romania's Social Democratic party, which won the parliamentary election, proposed Wednesday, Dec. 21, 2016 that Sevil Shhaideh take the post of prime minister.(AP Photo/Octav Ganea) (The Associated Press)

Romania's president says he will not nominate as prime minister an economist who could have become the country's first female Muslim premier.

President Klaus Iohannis on Tuesday said he had "carefully weighed the arguments for and against" and decided not to nominate Sevil Shhaideh, 52, a relative political novice, to the post of prime minister.

Iohannis called on the Social Democratic Party, winners of the Dec. 11 elections, which put her name forward last week, to nominate someone else for premier.

He did not say why he would not name Shhaideh, criticized for lacking sufficient political experience. She briefly served as regional development minister in 2015.

Social Democrat chairman Liviu Dragnea is unable to become prime minister because he was convicted this year of election fraud.

URL

https://www.foxnews.com/world/romanias-president-says-he-wont-name-muslim-woman-to-be-pm