Romania: shift to the right in parliament too
The social democratic PSD has emerged from Romania's parliamentary elections as the strongest party with 22 percent of the vote and could now form a four-way coalition with three other traditional parties. However, three right-wing populist parties together received around 32 percent of the vote. Meanwhile, the Constitutional Court has approved the result of the first round of the presidential election, meaning that the far-right populist Călin Georgescu can compete in Sunday's runoff vote.
A vote against the minimal state
The election result is a protest against the erosion of the state, writes Costi Rogozanu in his blog in Libertatea:
“A minimal state is not necessarily a state that spends little. It is a state that spends a lot to support the economy rather than on essential areas of public interest such as healthcare and education. It is the motorway state, not the state of the Romanian railway company CFR or public transport; it is the state of official residences, not the state of social housing. Many people no longer feel the presence of the state in their lives. Especially those in the struggling middle class, who neither receive social benefits nor benefit from the state's indirect spending.”
Hungarian minority also eyeing the far right
The behaviour of the Hungarian minority party is hard to predict, journalist Péter Demény writes on Transtelex:
“Hunor Kelemen [chairman of the Democratic Alliance of Hungarians in Romania, RMDSZ] is calling on his voters to cast their ballots for Elena Lasconi. This is a nice gesture, but the rhetoric and gestures of the RMDSZ have not always pointed in the direction of what it is now calling for - it's no wonder some polls show that 50 percent of ethnic Hungarians would vote for this gentleman [the far-right Georgescu]. The constant blaming of 'Brussels' and 'Soros' for all the problems, the fear-mongering about LGBTQ, the constant repetition of peace as opposed to 'pro-war' and the agenda of preserving identity above all else - these and not other reasons have led to this situation.”
Result boosts far right
Both elections have shown just how receptive society is to right-wing ideas, the Romanian service of Deutsche Welle observes:
“The lack of political reforms and the fact that political patronage takes precedence over meritocracy has brought the extremists to almost 30 percent. Even if they don't get into government they already have enough power and visibility to cause damage if the state institutions remain passive. On Saturday, for example, almost 100 people gathered in Tâncăbești to commemorate the leader of the Legionary Movement, Corneliu Zelea Codreanu, who is notorious for his extreme violence against Jews and political attacks in the interwar period. This was no simple religious service; there were Nazi salutes and the old Legionary songs were sung.”
Rifts in society are deepening
The rise of right-wing populist parties has serious consequences for democracy, warns Jurnalul National:
“The rhetoric of right-wing extremist parties is based on antagonism: between classes and social categories, between ethnicities, religions or political orientations. This approach creates deep divisions between different social groups, destroying the cohesion and solidarity that sustain a functioning democracy. Inaction against extremist parties has devastating consequences for democracy. ... History shows that when extremism goes unchecked, the risk of political violence increases significantly.”
The Church also shares responsibility
Disinformation and religious bigotry have also played a role in developments, Népszava comments:
“Not everyone who voted for the far-right parties in Romania is a fascist 'Legionnaire', but most of them are conspiracy theorists or blindly religious. The elections in Romania in recent weeks should set off alarm bells in our region. It has been shown that the intertwining of politics and the Church, backed up by a bit of professional Russian disinformation and popular conspiracy theories that spread unchecked on a Chinese-owned platform [TikTok], is toxic and could be fatal for the future of democratic Europe.”
Still a chance for balance
Romania is shifting to the right, complains Der Standard:
“The pro-Russian Călin Georgescu, who glorifies fascism, will probably be elected head of state in the runoff vote next Sunday. It's difficult to prevent this because the social democratic voters, who mostly live in rural areas and are older, less educated and more conservative, are hardly enthusiastic about the liberal candidate Elena Lasconi. Meanwhile, a majority is coming together for the formation of a government against the far right. ... The president and government are likely to belong to opposing camps, which will at least enable the pro-Western forces to prevent the unpredictable Georgescu from going too far with radical steps.”