The government nominated by Siegfried Muresan failed to secure the confidence vote in a joint sitting of Parliament on Wednesday.

Of the 464 MPs, 321 were present at Wednesday's sitting, and 197 valid votes were cast: 182 votes in favour of the government and 15 against.

To be invested, the government needed the support of a majority of the deputies and senators, namely at least 233 votes in favour.

AUR lawmakers were not present in the hall, while PSD MPs attended the sitting but did not vote.

'Today, in the Romanian Parliament, we came up with a solution to end the political crisis, and we saw that the parties that triggered the political crisis voted to prolong it. We are waiting to see what the next steps will be from the President of Romania. We will obviously continue to advocate for all the reforms that people are expecting. Over this past year, people have borne the burden of stabilising the country, and we will fight to ensure that the efforts made by the people over the past year are not in vain,' designated Prime Minister Siegfried Muresan said after the vote in the joint sitting of Parliament.

He thanked PNL, USR and UDMR lawmakers for their professionalism and seriousness, stating that: 'They finalised, in a very short time, a hands-on, reform-oriented government programme for a modern, strong, prosperous, democratic and secure Romania.'

Social Democratic Party leader Sorin Grindeanu said Romania urgently needs a government with full powers to change the country's course.

'We are prepared to take responsibility for Romania's recovery,' Grindeanu said in a post on his social media page following the joint sitting of Parliament.

Save Romania Union Chairman Dominic Fritz said that, following two failed attempts to secure a confidence vote and months of crisis, the head of state now has the constitutional instrument to dissolve Parliament.

'The time has come to return to the people's vote. The political crisis created by PSD and AUR is affecting prices, Romanian businesses and people's confidence in the future. Citizens should no longer have to helplessly watch the chaos created by PSD. USR is calling for early elections,' Dominic Fritz wrote on Facebook after Parliament voted down the proposed government.

AUR Chairman George Simion announced during the joint sitting of the Senate and Chamber of Deputies that lawmakers from his party would not vote for any government proposal until Calin Georgescu was released and justice was done for him.

'You get a chill down your spine whenever you hear about the Romanian people's vote and democratic elections. This is the constitutional solution that should be embraced by someone who governs Romania, yet who has a red line on his identity card and allows himself to draw red lines when it comes to governing the country. You do not intimidate us. I came to this rostrum today to give our answer, and that answer is: no. We are not traitors, we are not for sale; we remain loyal to the Romanian people who sent us here, to Parliament, to represent them with honour and dignity. (...) You have poisoned society, both literally and figuratively, and you have tried to intimidate and accuse us through all kinds of Judases whom you put forward to speak against us. Nothing is sacred to you. On my birthday, you had Mr Calin Georgescu arrested, and yesterday, ahead of an important vote for the country, you sent him to the Central Detention Centre and warned me that I was next. We are not afraid! (...) So my answer is no. Despite all the threats, we will not vote for this puppet government and - so that the voice of the Romanian people may be heard loud and clear in the Romanian Parliament - I want to tell you that we will not vote for any other government proposal until you release Calin Georgescu and give him justice,' George Simion said.

Siegfried Muresan was the third prime ministerial nominee put forward by President Nicusor Dan after the Bolojan Cabinet was dismissed by a no-confidence motion nearly five months ago, on May 5.

On June 4, the head of state designated MEP Eugen Tomac to form a government, but Tomac resigned his mandate after failing to secure a parliamentary majority.

Nicusor Dan's second choice was Adrian Vestea, who appeared before Parliament for a confidence vote on June 22 but failed to secure the required votes.

On September 29, a day before Parliament's joint sitting, President Nicusor Dan said it was time for the current political crisis to end, stressing that early elections were not a solution and that 'they would mean a continuation of instability and a lack of confidence among both Romanian citizens and the financial markets. (...) Regardless of what happens, Romania will stay the course fiscally. There is political consensus on this issue.'

According to Article 89 of the Constitution of Romania: '(1) After consulting the presidents of the two Chambers and the leaders of the parliamentary groups, the President of Romania may dissolve Parliament if it has failed to grant a vote of confidence for the formation of a Government within 60 days of the first request and only after the rejection of at least two requests for investiture. (2) Parliament may be dissolved only once in any given year. (3) Parliament may not be dissolved during the last six months of the term of office of the President of Romania, nor during a state of mobilisation, war, siege or emergency.' AGERPRES (RO - writing by: Andreea Rotaru; EN - writing by: Simona Klodnischi)