Victor-Viorel Ponta is a Romanian jurist and politician who currently serves as Prime Minister of Romania since being appointed by President Traian B?sescu in May 2012. A member of the Social Democratic Party and its leader since 2010, as well as joint leader of the then-governing Social Liberal Union, he has been a member of the Romanian Chamber of Deputies for Gorj County since 2004. In the Emil Boc cabinet, he was Minister-Delegate for Relations with Parliament from 2008 to 2009. Ponta began his time as head of government with a victory for his alliance in local elections, as well as criticism from civil society after several prominent B?sescu-associated figures in government-funded culture and history institutes were removed or resigned from their posts. Eventually, a political crisis broke out with the replacement of the heads of each legislative chamber and an attempt to dismiss B?sescu?an effort that ultimately failed when the subsequent impeachment referendum was invalidated by the Constitutional Court due to low turnout. Meanwhile, Ponta was the subject of controversy due to allegations of plagiarism in his doctoral thesis. 

September 20th, 1972 in Bucharest (Age 52)