Romania’s pro-European parties have come together to form a majority government following the recent parliamentary election. The parties, which traditionally held opposing views, have united to exclude far-right nationalists who made significant gains in the election on Dec. 1.
The leftist Social Democratic Party (PSD) emerged as the top vote-getter, leading to an agreement with the center-right National Liberal Party (PNL), the reformist Save Romania Union party (USR), and the small ethnic Hungarian UDMR party to form a grand coalition.
The election took place shortly after a presidential vote in which a far-right outsider, Calin Georgescu, made a surprising first-round victory. This unexpected turn of events led to allegations of electoral violations and Russian interference, prompting the Constitutional Court to annul the presidential race just days before the scheduled runoff on Dec. 8.
The new coalition has expressed its intention to potentially support a 'common pro-European candidate' in the upcoming presidential elections. The fate of Georgescu's candidacy in the rerun vote remains uncertain.
President Klaus Iohannis, whose second term is ending soon, has indicated that a new date for the presidential rerun will be determined once the new government assumes office.
The coalition parties are set to collaborate on a joint governing program that focuses on development, reforms, and addressing the priorities of Romanian citizens. Elena Lasconi, the leader of USR, emphasized the need to cut state spending and reduce bureaucracy as part of the governing agenda.
In an unexpected move, the historically opposing PSD and PNL parties formed a coalition in 2021, along with UDMR, despite past power-sharing disputes that led to UDMR's exit from the Cabinet last year.
