He was eliminated in the first round with 19.3% of the vote, losing to incumbent Viorel Lis who was supported by the Christian Democratic National Peasants' Party (PNȚ-CD).

[1] He ran again in 2000, achieving the highest first-round total (40.1%)[2] but losing in the second round with 49.3% to winner Traian Băsescu's 50.7%.

He was eliminated in the first round, gaining only 3.2% of the total cast votes and thereby placing on the 5th position, and was involved in a notable Condorcet cycle with Mircea Geoană and eventual winner Traian Băsescu.

In 2008, after the Social Democratic Party (PSD) refused to nominate him to the mayoral elections, he ran as an independent candidate.

[8] On 15 September 2015, being deposed by Bucharest's Prefect upon a courts' decision to maintain Oprescu's arrest, an interim successor was elected from one of the city's deputy-mayors.