Ilie Verdet; Prime Minister Under Ceausescu

Ilie Verdet, 75, a veteran Communist who served as Romanian prime minister under the late dictator Nicolae Ceausescu. Verdet formed the Socialist Party less than a year after the 1989 bloody revolt that led to Ceausescu’s ouster and execution. Born in the northeastern village of Comanesti, Verdet was a miner before he moved into politics, joining the Communist Party when he was 20. He rose within the ranks to become deputy prime minister from 1966 to 1974. In 1980, he was appointed prime minister, a position he held for two years. Amid the power struggles of the 1989 revolt, Verdet at one point set up a government that lasted just 20 minutes. He was outmaneuvered by Ion Iliescu, who was recently reelected president for a third term. On Tuesday night of a heart attack at his home in Bucharest.