Profiles and Careers of State Secretaries in the 132nd Government of Romania

Abstract

This paper investigates the profiles and careers of State Secretaries - dignitaries from the central public administration who help ministers in the management of the ministries in which they carry out their activity, officials that in Romania are considered the second echelon of power of the Romanian executive branch. The aim is to expand the scope of studies on the Romanian political elites and to contribute to the broadening of knowledge regarding the careers of politicians in the second echelon of power, elite studies carried out by the work of Stefan (2009) and Iancu (2017). The study will identify certain patterns that underlie the selection process of state secretaries, advancing the knowledge of the career paths of top Romanian politicians. Focusing on State Secretaries appointed after the formation of the 132nd government, on November 25, 2021, the present paper acknowledges that, according to the Administrative Code of Romania, state secretaries have an important role in the development of government policies and strategies. Given the critical role of governmental elites in outlining public policies and in adapting their countries to a changing international environment, marked by contingencies and structural crises, both the public and the academic interest in the state secretaries’ profiles and access to power is high (ªtefan, 2009). I expect to find different profiles and career paths, according to their age, gender, academic profile, previous occupations, the influence of political sponsors, party credentials, and of previous positions held in various public institutions. The information is gathered from public sources: resumes, official pages of ministries, and public media information. Based on the public information, the study reveals that previous experience in public institutions or being a member of the County Council are common traits among politically affiliated state secretaries and that professional and managerial skills are important assets when analysing appointments in the positions of state secretaries of politically unaffiliated persons, the so-called technocrats (Stefan, 2018).