Local elections show two parties dominating
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Romania’s local elections saw a resurgence of the Social Democratic Party (PSD) and confirmation that its biggest challenger is the new Democratic Liberal Party (PD-L), although neither party scored an overall majority among the electorate.
From 3,179 mayors nationwide, PSD has won 36 per cent and the PD-L 29 per cent, while among the local councils, the PSD won 30 per cent against the PD-L’s 28 per cent.
Outside of Bucharest, the country began to see a diagonal divide running from the northeast to southwest, with those above the line more inclined to the centre-right parties and those below tending to the old left.
The Democratic-Liberals won the most votes in large cities. They took over 15 cities mostly in central and west Romania such as Cluj-Napoca, Targu Mures and Brasov, while PSD won 12 cities such as Iasi, Vaslui, Bistrita and Constanta, located in south and east Romania.
PD-L and PSD won the most county council presidents which, for the first time this year, adopted a “uninominal” vote, otherwise known as a first-past-the-post system. This system favoured larger to smaller parties. The PSD won 17, the PD-L 14 and the PNL only five. County council presidents decide budgets for cities, towns and villages.
The main party of Government, the National Liberal Party (PNL), was pushed into third place. PNL succeeded to win more city halls in Transylvania and Banat.
The election of Romanian mayors is based on the majority system. The rule says that if no candidate wins the majority of the total votes in the first round, the top two candidates run in a second ballot. In the second round of votes, the liberal right National Liberal Party (PNL) threw its support behind the old left PSD candidates in a move which aimed to isolate the PD-L.
The difference in popularity between the top three parties and the remainder is immense. The New Generation Party (PNG), the Conservative Party (PC) and the Democratic Union of Hungarians in Romania (UDMR) scored similar percentages in these elections. If the extreme right-wing Greater Romania Party (PRM) continues to poll as badly as in these elections, the party risks leaving Parliament in the general elections later this year.
The newly created PD-L won more votes than the party of its provenance, the Democratic Party (PD), in the last local elections in 2004.
Because no party scored an outright majority, these results are a starting point for future alliances between parties, which will be sealed before the parliamentary elections due this autumn. If the results are similar, the future Government will need to be formed by two of the three main parties. Considering the bitter rivalry between the PD-L and PSD, it remains to be seen to whom the National Liberal Party will lend its support.
Parliament delays making decision on investigations
Parliament is delaying making a decision on whether its Social Democratic Party (PSD) members, Miron Mitrea and Adrian Nastase, can face investigation by the Anti-Corruption Department (DNA).
Approval of the investigation is seen by the European Commission as a sign as to whether Romania is serious about carrying out probes into alleged high level corruption.
Mitrea is an ex-Minister of Transport and Nastase was prime minister between 2000 and 2004.
In Parliament, whenever a vote to decide whether the DNA can investigate the ministers is proposed, MPs sympathetic to the two politicians stand up and exit the main chamber. When there are fewer than 50 per cent plus one of the elected representatives in the decision-making body, the collective vote is invalid.
Many MPs do not want to vote against the DNA investigation because they want to keep the appearance of a democratic state until the European Commission report on justice reform in Romania is made public this month.
The EC’s document is expected to warn the Romanian Parliament that its actions are stopping major anti-corruption investigations into cases of former and present ministers. This August the Government must also decide whether to renew the mandate of Daniel Morar, chief prosecutor of the DNA, who has begun the investigations into ministerial corruption.
Liberal capital losers fall out
Due to losses in the local elections, the two right of centre parties are changing their leadership in the capital.
Ludovic Orban, the candidate of the National Liberal Party (PNL) for Bucharest’s mayor, has been dismissed as president of the party’s branch for Bucharest, after he came fourth in the local elections.
Prime Minister and PNL’s president Calin Popescu Tariceanu also decided to dismiss the boards for the local branches in four Bucharest sectors. The Prime Minister himself will act as interim head of the Bucharest branch. Tariceanu explained that there was no competition or rivalry between Ludovic Orban and himself, and that the decision comes as a consequence of poor results in the local elections.
Orban explained that his defeat was caused by the political context, not by a poor electoral campaign. It remains to be seen whether Ludovic Orban will maintain his position of Minister of Transport until the general elections this autumn.
Another six heads of the local organisations of the PNL may be forced to resign in the counties of Dambovita, Neamt, Suceava, Sibiu, Arad and Timis, where Liberals obtained less than 15 per cent of the votes.
Capital mayoral candidate Vasile Blaga has also resigned as leader of the Democratic Liberal Party (PD-L) Bucharest branch, following his defeat to independent candidate Sorin Oprescu. Blaga’s resignation letter was not approved by the party’s leadership by the time The Diplomat went to press. Mayor of Sector 3 Liviu Negoita has the greatest chance of replacing Blaga.
The PD-L also dismissed nine county-level leaders where the party did not win more than 24 per cent of the vote.
Short News
Romanian soldiers abroad set to drop by a third
Romania has decided to lower its commitment of soldiers in foreign battle theatres by 541 in 2009, following more deaths in conflict zones. Romania’s Supreme Defence Council (CSAT) has decided to reduce the number of Romanians from 1,500 soldiers and specialists involved in international missions around the world. In Afghanistan, where seven Romanian have so far died since 2002, there are 644 soldiers, while in Iraq there are 501 soldiers, where only two soldiers have died since 2003.
Shamed ex-Agriculture Ministers sent to court
Former Ministers of Agriculture Decebal Traian Remes and Ioan Muresan and businessman Gheorghe Ciorba have been sent to court by the National Anti-Corruption Department (DNA). Remes is accused of influence peddling, while Muresan is charged for complicity to buy influence. Last September, Romanian public TV broadcasted a video showing then-Agriculture Minister Remes receiving an envelope from the former Agriculture minister Muresan. Prosecutors say the envelope contained a 15,000 Euro bribe, paid by businessman Gheorghe Ciorba. The businessman also offered Remes a luxury car worth 75,000 Euro. Ciorba bribed Remes through Muresan in return for one of his firms to win a public auction.
Rollback from free and independent society: US report
Romania is rolling back its reforms in justice, governance and independence of the media and civil society, according to the annual US NGO Freedom House report. The Parliament’s attempt to dismiss President Traian Basescu in 2007 encouraged the NGO’s analysts to consider 2007 a year of political instability. Civil society continues to suffer from a lack of funds and is vulnerable in front of politics, states the report. Freedom House also points out that last year the press continued its trend to becoming the property of only a few very wealthy businessman, while the editorial content is affected by “negative campaigns and blackmail”.
Re-elected mayor faces illegal cash bonus probe
Romania’s Court of Accounts has notified the Bucharest Tribunal about illegal payments worth over 100,000 Euro by Bucharest Sector 1 mayor Andrei Chiliman to his employees. This comes two days after the mayor was re-elected in Romania’s second round of local elections on a campaign of saving the city from corrupt property deals. The Court of Accounts demanded the tribunal to recover the money from Chiliman. Nicolae Grigorescu, sector 1 city hall secretary, also faces charges because he approved Chiliman’s loyalty bonuses to the employees. The Mayor denies the accusations made.
Romanian car mecca in driving license bribe scam
More than 20 people have been arrested for giving and taking bribes for driving licenses in a massive scam engulfing Arges county, the spiritual home of Romania’s car industry and location of the Dacia-Renault factory. An organised crime network including police officers, clerks and managers of driving schools forged exams in return for bribes of between 700 and 4,500 Euro for each license. According to anti-corruption prosecutors, between March and June this year the members of this network have asked and received bribes from at least 4,000 local citizens.
TV forced to spend half its time telling audience how brilliant Romania is
Last month the Senate aprroved a law forcing public and private TV and radio stations in Romania to broadcast an equal number of positive and negative news stories in the media. The draft law, initiated by the Greater Romania Party (PRM) senator Gheorghe Funar and National Liberal Party (PNL) senator Ioan Ghise is against both the Romanian Constitution and the European Convention on Human Rights rules on free expression and freedom of speech. NGO the Media Monitoring Agency has condemned the decision amid fears this attempt to manipulate news coverage will force TV and radio to present a rosier picture of Romania than the one that exists. The law awaits the Chamber of Deputies’ approval.
