​UPDATE Romania government holds first session after departurte of coalition partner

The Social Democratic (PSD) government of PM Viorica Dancila is due to convene in the early afternoon on Tuesday for its first session after a minor but influential parter, ALDE, announced on Monday it would leave the governing coalition. Three of four ALDE ministers are expected to resign after the session, with a fourth announcing she would stick with the government.

• UPDATE The ALDE ministers except Foreign minister Manescu submitted their resignations in the afternoon, a government spokesman announced. PM Dancila thanked them anyway and, re-affirming PSD would stick to its government, claimed that „while governing hasn’t been perfect, it is certainly efficient”.

ALDE caused a major stir in Romanian politics with its announcement on Monday that:

• it splits up with the PSD
• it would forge an alliance with another political group, Pro Romania
• it would support a different candidate than Dancila for presidential elections
• its ministers would resign

ALDE’s departure would force the PSD to struggle to find support for its measures in the Parliament, in a time where PSD leader Viorica Dancila tries to fare as good as possible in presidential elections later this year and politicians gear up for general and local elections in 2020.

ALDE has had four ministers in the Government – Foreign minister Ramona Manescu, Energy minister Anton Anton, Environment minister Gratiela Gavrilescu and the minister for parliamentary relations, Viorel Ilie.

They are expected to attend the government session today, but all but Ramona Manescu are expected to resign as it ends. Manescu has said she would stay with the Government despite ALDE leader Calin Popescu Tariceanu’s warning that ministers who wouldn’t resign would be ousted from the party.