BUCHAREST (Reuters) - Romania's government survived a no-confidence vote brought by the centre-right opposition on Monday, as was widely expected, removing what was seen as the final hurdle to Prime Minister Victor Ponta running for president in November.
The motion needed 288 votes to topple the leftist cabinet, but it got support only from 154 deputies and senators in both houses of parliament.
The Christian-Liberal alliance of Klaus Iohannis, Ponta's main challenger in the presidential poll, which filed the motion, accused the government of masterminding a plan to commit electoral fraud. Ponta is widely tipped to win in November.
"It didn't pass, the government goes ahead with its mandate," Marian Neacsu, leader of the ruling Social Democrat group in the lower house told Reuters by telephone.
(Reporting by Radu Marinas; editing by Matthias Williams)
