<p>Romania's unpopular president was fighting for his political life on Sunday as Romanians voted on whether to impeach him, part of a political battle that has raised questions about the rule of law in the fledgling European Union member.<br /><br /></p>.<p>Traian Basescu’s rivals in the government are seeking to impeach him for the second time in five years. They claim the 60-year-old populist violated the constitution by meddling in government business, coddling cronies and using the secret services against enemies.<br /><br />Basescu, a former ship captain whose popularity has plummeted over economic challenges, says the impeachment process is a political vendetta carried out by opponents and has urged his supporters to boycott the vote — a tactic that may help him survive thanks to a rule requiring turnout to be more than half of the total electorate.</p>
<p>Romania's unpopular president was fighting for his political life on Sunday as Romanians voted on whether to impeach him, part of a political battle that has raised questions about the rule of law in the fledgling European Union member.<br /><br /></p>.<p>Traian Basescu’s rivals in the government are seeking to impeach him for the second time in five years. They claim the 60-year-old populist violated the constitution by meddling in government business, coddling cronies and using the secret services against enemies.<br /><br />Basescu, a former ship captain whose popularity has plummeted over economic challenges, says the impeachment process is a political vendetta carried out by opponents and has urged his supporters to boycott the vote — a tactic that may help him survive thanks to a rule requiring turnout to be more than half of the total electorate.</p>