Key Political Parties in Romania

The Liberal-Democratic Party:

The Liberal-Democratic Party is the successor of The National Salvation Front, a political formation born as a large mass movement in December 1989, during the Revolution.

Over the past two decades, the party has gone through several mergers and campaigns to redefine its doctrine and name. From a socialist doctrine, the party has now taken a Christian-democratic approach, being situated on the centre-right area of the political spectrum. Once the most vocal opposition party, the Liberal-Democratic Party has become the largest governing party, with most representatives in the Romanian Parliament.

According to its status, it aims to provide and assure “a political and social climate, favourable to the development of human personality, creativity and progress”. Yet, the latest decisions the party has taken in order to combat the economic crisis has led to it losing its popularity.

Its first leader, Petre Roman, was also the first Prime Minister of post-revolutionary Romania. The party leadership was then taken by Traian Basescu, now President of Romania, considered to be the most popular and trustworthy personality of the party, at that time. He won the elections wishing everybody to “Live Well!”, a saying which is now blasphemed by the people due to the measures taken over the financial crisis.

After he was named President, Traian Basescu retired from the party leadership and put the current Prime Minster Emil Boc in his place, a nomination only on paper, analysts claimed. Traian Basescu is still the shadow leader of the party, often interfering in its decisions and actions.

The Social Democratic Party:

The Social Democratic Party is the main opposition party in Romania. After the defeat suffered in the last presidential campaign, PSD has regularly tried to overturn the current government through censorship motions, but without success, due to the low number of parliamentary seats. The founding parties of PSD came up with government programmes and policies ranging from democratic socialism and social-democracy, PSDR to a mixture of social democracy and pragmatism, in terms of governance, PDSR. The party now says it is social-democratic and progressive.

The President is Victor Ponta, ex-Vice President of PSD and ex-minister for the Relation with Parliament during Emil Boc’s first cabinet. But the dominant figure of the party is still Ion Iliescu, the Honorary President of PSD and the first Romanian President after the Revolution. During his governance, the introduction of political, social and economic reforms were started, as well as the NATO accession and the final parley phase for EU accession. Still under his leadership, Romania has undergone miners’ movements, highly controversial privatisations and an invasion of local barons - various local leaders who have gained billions of Euros from doing business with the state.  

Soon after the end of his administration in 2005, an investigation was started in a bid to assess Iliescu’s role during the 1990’s miners’ movements, when miners from Jiu Valey came to Bucharest to suppress the anti-governmental demonstrations. Prosecutors decided there was not enough evidence to place Iliescu under criminal investigation.

The National Liberal Party:

The National Liberal Party is the youngest ancient Romanian party - ancient by tradition and history (it was established in May 24, 1875) and young by vision and pragmatism, according to the party’s logo.

Liberals had been governing for quite long periods of time between 1867 and 1937, with small interruptions, and 30 out of 87 Romanian cabinets were led by liberal prime ministers. In 1947, the communists split the party, imprisoned some of its members and sent others to propagandist labour camps.

After the Revolution, the party was re-established and obtained 39 parliamentary seats. Since then, PNL has remained the only authentic right party, addressed to elites and the middle class. Since March, 2009, Crin Antonescu has been the party’s President. He obtained the best results ever at the latest presidential elections: 22% of valid votes. Still, the Liberal Party remains sidelined in the Romanian political spotlight, despite all its efforts to form an opposition with the other parties that are not governing.

Democratic Union of Hungarians in Romania  

The Democratic Union of Hungarians is the main political organisation representing the ethnic Hungarians of Romania.

As an ethnic minority, above all, UDMR concerns itself with Hungarian rights, including cultural and territorial autonomy on an ethnic basis. To advance its goals, the union participated in or supported all Romania’s governments from 1996 onwards, regardless of their political colour and it has been represented in both houses of the Romanian Parliament since its formation. In national elections, the union constantly obtains about six per cent of the votes, which roughly corresponds to the percentage of ethnic Hungarians from the total population in Romania.

Most of the Romanians, especially those with extremist and anti-minority views, are against the measures proposed by the UDMR’s members. According to its leader, Marko Bela: “The goal of the UDMR is the territorial autonomy which we deserve.” 

Also, Bela wants to “recover the country lost in 1918” (when Transylania was integrated into Romania), including “the houses, the woods, the lands and the flag”, which were that time nationalised or taken from their owners.

UDMR has been criticised on several occasions for its lack of specific doctrine. The main argument for preserving the current structure is that if it splits into smaller fractions of different ideological orientations, it would be impossible for the Hungarian community to obtain more seats in the Parliament. Several voices from within the party and the Hungarian community have criticised it for being too moderate, and making too many compromises in political treaties with other Romanian parties.

However, during the elections, UDMR proved it still had the support of the overwhelming majority of Hungarians.

The Greater Romania Party:

Corneliu Vadim Tudor, the leader of the Greater Romania Party, PRM, is one of the most controversial, essentially populist, political figures in Romania. He is known for his strongly nationalist and xenophobic views, along with his party. PRM is a Romanian radical right-wing, ultra-nationalist party founded in 1991.

He has frequently styled himself The Tribune, a title that stood for certain activists in the self-defence of Romanian communities in Transylvania against the Revolutionary government in Hungary.

Both the ideology and the main political focus of the Greater Romania Party are reflected in frequently strongly nationalistic articles written by Corneliu Vadim Tudor. For example, in his magazine, Tricolorul,  there is a permanent column called simply Unguri ("Hungarians"), in which he criticises alleged anti-Romanian conspiracies among the ethnic Hungarian party.

It briefly participated in government from 1993 to 1995. In 2000, Tudor received the second-largest number of votes in Romania's presidential elections, partially as a result of protest votes lodged by Romanians frustrated with the fractionalisation and mixed performance of the 1996-2000 Romanian Democratic Convention government.

Tudor's second-place position ensured he would compete in the second round run-off against the former president, Ion Iliescu, who won by a large margin.

Parallels are often drawn with the situation in France two years later, when far right National Front Party leader Jean-Marie Le Pen similarly drew the second-largest number of votes and was elevated, but defeated, in the presidential run-off against Jacques Chirac.

Other Romanian Political parties

Minor parties
Christian/Democratic National Peasants' Party
Communist Party
Democratic Force of Romania
Ecologist Party of Romania
Green Party
National Initiative Party
New Generation Party – Christian Democratic
Socialist Alliance Party