Romanian legislative election, 2012
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Parliamentary elections were held in Romania on 9 December 2012. The Social Liberal Union (USL) co-led by former Prime Minister Victor Ponta won an absolute majority in both the
Chamber of Deputies The chamber of deputies is the lower house in many bicameral legislatures and the sole house in some unicameral legislatures. Description Historically, French Chamber of Deputies was the lower house of the French Parliament during the Bourbon R ...
and the
Senate A senate is a deliberative assembly, often the upper house or chamber of a bicameral legislature. The name comes from the ancient Roman Senate (Latin: ''Senatus''), so-called as an assembly of the senior (Latin: ''senex'' meaning "the el ...
. At the time of the elections, despite the severe weather in several parts of the country, the turnout was approximately 42%, slightly higher than the last parliamentary elections held in 2008 which saw a turnout of 39%. The Social Liberal Union (USL) obtained a huge majority in both the Chamber of Deputies and the Senate, with 60% and 59% respectively of the votes and in MP mandates, namely a record number of 395 seats. Far behind, the
Right Romania Alliance The Right Romania Alliance ( ro, Alianţa România Dreaptă, ARD, also translating to "Just Romania Alliance") was a Romanian electoral alliance formed between the Democratic Liberal Party (PDL), the Christian Democratic National Peasants' Part ...
(ARD) came in second place with only 17% of the vote and 80 seats, losing about half of what they won as the Democratic Liberal Party (PDL) in 2008. The ARD was officially dissolved after the elections.
People's Party – Dan Diaconescu The People's Party – Dan Diaconescu ( ro, Partidul Poporului – Dan Diaconescu; abbreviated PP-DD) was a populist political party in Romania created in 2011 by television presenter Dan Diaconescu. In June 2015 it merged into the National Unio ...
(PP–DD) and the Democratic Alliance of Hungarians in Romania (UDMR/RMDSZ) were the only other political groups that won seats in the Senate. Several parties of ethnic minorities also received individual seats in the Chamber of Deputies.


Background


Protests

Following weeks of demonstrations against
austerity Austerity is a set of political-economic policies that aim to reduce government budget deficits through spending cuts, tax increases, or a combination of both. There are three primary types of austerity measures: higher taxes to fund spend ...
measures demanded by the International Monetary Fund for a multi-billion US dollar loan, former Prime Minister Emil Boc (
PDL PDL is an initialism for: Politics *Democratic Liberal Party (Romania), Democratic Liberal Party (''Partidul Democrat Liberal''), a former political party in Romania *Labour Democratic Party (''Partito Democratico del Lavoro''), a former politi ...
) resigned on 6 February 2012. The opposition, represented at that time by the Social Liberal Union (USL) leaders Victor Ponta ( PSD) and
Crin Antonescu George Crin Laurențiu Antonescu (; born 21 September 1959) is a Romanian politician, who was President of the National Liberal Party (PNL) from 2009 to 2014. He also served as the country Acting President after the impeachment of Traian Băsesc ...
( PNL), then called for early elections. However, as the three parties behind the government (namely the
PDL PDL is an initialism for: Politics *Democratic Liberal Party (Romania), Democratic Liberal Party (''Partidul Democrat Liberal''), a former political party in Romania *Labour Democratic Party (''Partito Democratico del Lavoro''), a former politi ...
, UDMR/RMDSZ, and UNPR) still relied on a slight parliamentary majority, an ad interim solution was agreed with the opposition that the government could stay in power until the next elections, conditional of electing a
political independent An independent or non-partisan politician is a politician not affiliated with any political party or bureaucratic association. There are numerous reasons why someone may stand for office as an independent. Some politicians have political views th ...
technocrat as the new prime minister. Consequently, the former Foreign Intelligence Service (SIE) Director Mihai Răzvan Ungureanu was appointed
acting Acting is an activity in which a story is told by means of its enactment by an actor or actress who adopts a character—in theatre, television, film, radio, or any other medium that makes use of the mimetic mode. Acting involves a broad r ...
prime minister on 9 February 2012. The government announced the intention to hold parliamentary and
local elections In many parts of the world, local elections take place to select office-holders in local government, such as mayors and councillors. Elections to positions within a city or town are often known as "municipal elections". Their form and conduct vary ...
at the same time, by lengthening the term of the local elected officials (i.e. Mayors, Local Councils, County Councils, and County Councils Presidents). It was suspected that the attempt to delay local elections was related to the fact that massive street protests had erupted in the meantime, and, at the same time, the opposition political alliance Social Liberal Union (USL) went on strike in the Parliament, pushing for early parliamentary elections to be called one or two weeks after local elections in June. Initially, the government proposed an election date in November 2012, but as the mayoral mandates already expired in June 2012, this was ruled unconstitutional. The local elections were eventually held on
10 June Events Pre-1600 * 671 – Emperor Tenji of Japan introduces a water clock (water clock, clepsydra) called ''Rokoku''. The instrument, which measures time and indicates hours, is placed in the capital of Ōtsu, Shiga, Ōtsu. *1190 – Th ...
, with an unexpected runoff and three repeated elections on 17 June.


Motion of no confidence

The political alliance Social Liberal Union (USL), at that time comprising the three parties PSD, PNL, and PC, initiated and succeeded to vote a motion of no confidence against Mihai Răzvan Ungureanu and his
cabinet Cabinet or The Cabinet may refer to: Furniture * Cabinetry, a box-shaped piece of furniture with doors and/or drawers * Display cabinet, a piece of furniture with one or more transparent glass sheets or transparent polycarbonate sheets * Filing ...
on 27 April 2012 after just two months in office. Afterwards, former President Traian Băsescu nominated then opposition leader and president of the
Social Democratic Party The name Social Democratic Party or Social Democrats has been used by many political parties in various countries around the world. Such parties are most commonly aligned to social democracy as their political ideology. Active parties For ...
, Victor Ponta as Prime Minister.


Electoral system

In May 2012, the new
USL The USL Championship (USLC) is a professional men's soccer league in the United States that began its inaugural season in 2011. The USL is sanctioned by the United States Soccer Federation (U.S. Soccer) as a Division II league since 2017, p ...
government passed an electoral law in parliament, which changed the election system to a single-round FPTP system without the 5% electoral threshold with extra seats for minorities, both ethnic minorities and Romanian minorities. However, after PDL, fearing poor results in the elections ahead because of it, appealed the Constitutional Court of Romania who invalidated the law on 27 June 2012 and reinstated the old one. A consequence of this is that after the 2012 parliamentary elections the size of the new Parliament grew to a record total number of 588, an added 117 seats than in the last parliament: 39 supplementary
Senate A senate is a deliberative assembly, often the upper house or chamber of a bicameral legislature. The name comes from the ancient Roman Senate (Latin: ''Senatus''), so-called as an assembly of the senior (Latin: ''senex'' meaning "the el ...
seats, and 97 supplementary
Chamber of Deputies The chamber of deputies is the lower house in many bicameral legislatures and the sole house in some unicameral legislatures. Description Historically, French Chamber of Deputies was the lower house of the French Parliament during the Bourbon R ...
seats, including the 18 seats for the ethnic minorities parties and organisations.


Party standings and political alliances

In late 2010, the PSD+PC Alliance broke up without affecting the
MEP MEP may refer to: Organisations and politics * Mahajana Eksath Peramuna, a political party in Sri Lanka * Mahajana Eksath Peramuna (1956), a former political alliance in Sri Lanka * Maison européenne de la photographie, a photography centre ...
seat held by the PC. In January 2011, the National Liberal Party – PNL and the Conservative Party – PC formed the Centre Right Alliance – ACD. In February 2011, ACD together with the Social Democratic Party – PSD formed the Social Liberal Union – USL. Following the
local election In many parts of the world, local elections take place to select office-holders in local government, such as mayors and councillors. Elections to positions within a city or town are often known as "municipal elections". Their form and conduct vary ...
, PSD, and the National Union for the Progress of Romania – UNPR formed the Centre Left Alliance, thus UNPR joining
USL The USL Championship (USLC) is a professional men's soccer league in the United States that began its inaugural season in 2011. The USL is sanctioned by the United States Soccer Federation (U.S. Soccer) as a Division II league since 2017, p ...
in mid 2012. For the 2012 local election
PDL PDL is an initialism for: Politics *Democratic Liberal Party (Romania), Democratic Liberal Party (''Partidul Democrat Liberal''), a former political party in Romania *Labour Democratic Party (''Partito Democratico del Lavoro''), a former politi ...
formed various county-level alliances with a wide range of parties, including UNPR. Following the presidential impeachment referendum it urged the formation of a political alliance with a number of minor political parties and foundations, such as
New Republic New Republic may refer to: Places * New Republic, California, former name of Santa Rita, Monterey County, California * New Republic (Santarem), district in the city of Santarém, Pará Countries * New Republic (Brazil), the restored civilian gove ...
led by Mihail Neamțu, and the centre-right Civic Initiative led by Mihai Răzvan Ungureanu. Eventually Ungureanu joined a minor party,
Civic Force Civic Force ( ro, Forța Civică, FC) was a list of political parties in Romania, political party in Romania. It was founded in 2004 by former Mayor of Bucharest Viorel Lis (formerly affiliated with the Christian Democratic National Peasants' Part ...
(FC), and was elected its president. The alliance registered at the Central Electoral Bureau was called Right Romania Alliance – ARD formed by
PDL PDL is an initialism for: Politics *Democratic Liberal Party (Romania), Democratic Liberal Party (''Partidul Democrat Liberal''), a former political party in Romania *Labour Democratic Party (''Partito Democratico del Lavoro''), a former politi ...
, PNȚCD, and FC.


Opinion polling

The
PDL PDL is an initialism for: Politics *Democratic Liberal Party (Romania), Democratic Liberal Party (''Partidul Democrat Liberal''), a former political party in Romania *Labour Democratic Party (''Partito Democratico del Lavoro''), a former politi ...
centred ARD alliance was formed late after the
2012 Romanian presidential impeachment referendum A referendum on impeaching President Traian Băsescu was held in Romania on 29 July 2012. The referendum was required after Parliament voted in favour of impeaching Băsescu on 6 July, and had to take place within a month. It was the second refe ...
. As a result, some opinion polls do not include the ARD. Opinion polls that show
PDL PDL is an initialism for: Politics *Democratic Liberal Party (Romania), Democratic Liberal Party (''Partidul Democrat Liberal''), a former political party in Romania *Labour Democratic Party (''Partito Democratico del Lavoro''), a former politi ...
do not show ARD. The UNPR joined
USL The USL Championship (USLC) is a professional men's soccer league in the United States that began its inaugural season in 2011. The USL is sanctioned by the United States Soccer Federation (U.S. Soccer) as a Division II league since 2017, p ...
in August–September 2012, in a sceptical environment. As a result, some opinion polls showed both political entities. The PNG-CD leader
George Becali George "Gigi" Becali (; born 25 June 1958) is a Romanian businessman and former politician, mostly known for his ownership of the FCSB football club. Becali was a Member of the European Parliament between June 2009 and December 2012, and a Memb ...
joined the PNL and ran backed by the
USL The USL Championship (USLC) is a professional men's soccer league in the United States that began its inaugural season in 2011. The USL is sanctioned by the United States Soccer Federation (U.S. Soccer) as a Division II league since 2017, p ...
in Bucharest. Furthermore, his former party did not propose any candidates for this election.


Candidates

Out of the 12 contesting parties running for the
Chamber of Deputies The chamber of deputies is the lower house in many bicameral legislatures and the sole house in some unicameral legislatures. Description Historically, French Chamber of Deputies was the lower house of the French Parliament during the Bourbon R ...
and the
Senate A senate is a deliberative assembly, often the upper house or chamber of a bicameral legislature. The name comes from the ancient Roman Senate (Latin: ''Senatus''), so-called as an assembly of the senior (Latin: ''senex'' meaning "the el ...
, only three submitted a full list of candidates: Social Liberal Union (USL),
Right Romania Alliance The Right Romania Alliance ( ro, Alianţa România Dreaptă, ARD, also translating to "Just Romania Alliance") was a Romanian electoral alliance formed between the Democratic Liberal Party (PDL), the Christian Democratic National Peasants' Part ...
(ARD), and the Democratic Alliance of Hungarians in Romania (UDMR/RMDSZ).
People's Party - Dan Diaconescu People's, branded as ''People's Viennaline'' until May 2018, and legally ''Altenrhein Luftfahrt Gesellschaft mit beschränkter Haftung, GmbH'', is an Austrian airline headquartered in Vienna. It operates scheduled and charter passenger flights ma ...
(PP-DD) submitted a list with one candidate less than all the available colleges. Only one
independent candidate An independent or non-partisan politician is a politician not affiliated with any political party or bureaucratic association. There are numerous reasons why someone may stand for office as an independent. Some politicians have political views th ...
decided to run for the Senate and 12 for the Chamber of Deputies. There were 18 national minorities associations proposing one candidate each for the Chamber of Deputies.


Results

The Social Liberal Union (USL) maintained majority in both the Chamber of Deputies and the Senate.


Senate


Chamber of Deputies


Local referendums

Two local non-binding referendums were also organized on 9 December, concerning environmental issues. The first one took place in Alba county and people were asked whether they were in favor or against the Roșia Montană mining project. Although 62% of those who voted voiced support for the controversial project, the referendum did not meet the required turnout of 50%, as only 43,2% of voters turned up. The second referendum was held in the communes of
Limanu Limanu is a commune in Constanța County, Northern Dobruja, Romania. Demographics At the 2011 census, Limanu had 5,337 Romanians (85.1%), 8 Hungarians (0.1%), 84 Roma (1.3%), 3 Germans (0.05%), 6 Turks (0.10%), 179 Tatars (2.9%), 178 Lipovans (2 ...
,
Costinești Costinești is a commune and resort in Constanța County, Northern Dobruja, Romania, located on the shore of the Black Sea, about south of the county seat, Constanța. It consists of two villages: Costinești and Schitu. Etymology Costinești ...
as well as in the city of
Mangalia Mangalia (, tr, Mankalya), ancient Callatis ( el, Κάλλατις/Καλλατίς; other historical names: Pangalia, Panglicara, Tomisovara), is a city and a port on the coast of the Black Sea in the south-east of Constanța County, Northern D ...
and asked voters to say whether they were in favor or against the use, by Chevron, of shale gas extraction by means of
hydraulic fracturing Fracking (also known as hydraulic fracturing, hydrofracturing, or hydrofracking) is a well stimulation technique involving the fracturing of bedrock formations by a pressurized liquid. The process involves the high-pressure injection of "frack ...
. This referendum failed to meet the required turnout as well.


Incidents

Although a report by the OSCE stated the elections were administered "professionally and efficiently", the
electioneering A political campaign is an organized effort which seeks to influence the decision making progress within a specific group. In democracies, political campaigns often refer to electoral campaigns, by which representatives are chosen or referend ...
, initiated on 9 November and ended on 8 December, was not without incidents. Dan Diaconescu, candidate from PP-DD in the same college of Chamber of Deputies in
Târgu Jiu Târgu Jiu () is the capital of Gorj County in the Oltenia region of Romania. It is situated on the Southern Sub-Carpathians, on the banks of the river Jiu. Eight localities are administered by the city: Bârsești, Drăgoieni, Iezureni, Polata, ...
with Prime Minister Victor Ponta, is investigated for electoral bribery. Authorities were notified after PSD representatives within Gorj County Council filed a complaint regarding the distribution of food and the organization of an electoral spectacle before the electioneering. According to the Emergency Ordinance issued on 6 November by Ponta Cabinet, offering food, drink and money in the campaign is illegal. On 11 November, an old man from the commune of
Mătăsari Mătăsari is a commune in Gorj County, Oltenia, Romania Romania ( ; ro, România ) is a country located at the crossroads of Central Europe, Central, Eastern Europe, Eastern, and Southeast Europe, Southeastern Europe. It borders Bulgari ...
(
Gorj County Gorj County () is a county ( județ) of Romania, in Oltenia, with its capital city at Târgu Jiu. ''Gorj'' comes from the Slavic ''Gor(no)-'' Jiu (“upper Jiu”), in contrast with Dolj (“lower Jiu”). Demographics In 2011, the county had a ...
) had a heart attack shortly after a discussion in contradictory with PDL deputy Constantin Severus Militaru. PDL deputy said that the old man was very indignant because his pension was not recalculated, although he had worked all his life in mining. The President of PDL Vrancea, Alin Trășculescu, was caught in the act by anticorruption prosecutors while receiving €50,000 from a businessman in the form of bribe. He was detained for 24 hours for allegations of lobbyism, instigation to false and incitement to the misdemeanor of money laundering."PDL deputy Alin Trășculescu, detained for 24 hours. DNA accused him of lobbyism, instigation to false in documents and money laundering"
''Gândul.info''
Alin Trășculescu was under the supervision of National Anticorruption Department for two years. He claimed he could get contracts with the State, from the Ministry of Development and Tourism, led then by
Elena Udrea Elena Gabriela Udrea (; born 26 December 1973) is a Romanian politician. An independent who held office while in the Democratic Liberal Party (PDL) and then the People's Movement Party (PMP), she was a member of the Romanian Chamber of Deputies ...
.


Notes


References


External links

{{Romanian elections Parliamentary elections in Romania Romania Romania Parliamentary