Elections in Romania
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Romania elects on a national level a head of state – the president – and a legislature. The president is elected for a five-year term (after a change from four-year terms after the 2004 election). The Romanian Parliament (Romanian: Parlamentul României) has two chambers. The Chamber of Deputies (Romanian: Camera Deputaţilor) currently has 331 members (after the last legislative elections), elected for a four-year term by party-list proportional representation on closed lists. The Senate (Romanian: Senatul) currently has 134 members (after the last legislative elections), elected for a four-year term by party-list proportional representation on closed lists.
Romania has a multi-party system, with numerous parties in which no one party often has a chance of gaining power alone, and parties must work with each other to form coalition governments.
On 25 November 2007, for the first time, Romanians elected their representatives to the European Parliament.
On 6 December 2024, the Constitutional Court annulled the results of the first round of the presidential election, after intelligence documents showing Russian interference were declassified.[1]
Electoral system
[edit]President
[edit]The President is elected in a two-round system for a five-year term. Candidates obtaining a majority of 50%+1 of all registered voters in the first round are declared the winner. If none of the candidates achieve this, then a run-off is held between the two contenders with the top scores in the first round. The candidate who obtains any majority of votes in the run-off is declared the winner.
The term of the president is five years. Between 1992 and 2004 the term was of four years, but was increased following the 2003 Constitutional referendum. One person can serve a maximum of two terms, that may be consecutive.
In order to be able to run for the Office of President a candidate must fulfill the following conditions: be a Romanian citizen, be at least 35 years of age (at least on the day of the election), and not have held the office for two terms since 1992, when the 1991 Constitution took effect.[2]
Parliament
[edit]
The Chamber of Deputies and the Senate are elected in constituencies, by universal, equal, direct, secret, and freely expressed suffrage, on the basis of a list system and independent candidatures, according to the principle of closed party list proportional representation. The option for an identical election system of the two Chambers of Parliament confers them the same legitimacy, as both of them are the expression of the will of the same electoral body.
The two Chambers have different numbers of members: the Chamber of Deputies is composed of 331 Deputies, and the Senate of 136 Senators. This differentiation is possible owing to the legal provision of a representation norm differing from one Chamber to the other and due to the seats allotted to the national minorities (a seat in the Chamber of Deputies for each minority) and to the Romanians living abroad (4 seats in the Chamber and 2 in the Senate). Thus, for the election of the Chamber of Deputies the representation norm is of one Deputy to 73,000 inhabitants,[3] and for the election of the Senate, of one Senator to 168,000 inhabitants.[3]
The number of Deputies and Senators to be elected in each constituency is determined on the basis of the representation norm, by relating the number of inhabitants in each constituency to the representation norm. There are 43 constituencies: 1 for each county and the Municipality of Bucharest, and 1 for the Romanians living abroad.[3] In a constituency, the number of Deputies cannot be less than four, and that of Senators, less than two. The number of inhabitants taken into account is that existing on 1 January of the previous year,[3] published in the Statistical Yearbook of Romania. If, at least five months before the election date, a general census has taken place, the number of inhabitants taken into account is that resulting from the census.
The electoral threshold is for parties or candidates running individually 5% on national level or 20% in at least 4 constituencies, and 8-10% for coalitions or electoral alliances.[3]
The Constitution of Romania and the Election Law grant to legally constituted organizations of citizens belonging to national minorities, in case these could not obtain at the election at least one Deputy or Senator mandate, the right to a Deputy mandate, if they have obtained throughout the country a number of votes equal to at least 5% out of the average number of votes validly expressed throughout the country for the election of one Deputy.
The mandates assigned, under the conditions of the Election Law, to organizations of citizens belonging to national minorities are added to the Deputy mandates resulted from the representation norm.
European Parliament
[edit]To elect the 33 MEPs (35 MEPs between 2007 and 2009, 32 between 2014 and 2019), Romania is considered a single constituency. The system used is closed party list proportional representation, with a 5% threshold of the votes.
Local elections
[edit]To elect the mayors the first past the post is used since 2012. The candidate who wins most of the votes is declared elected. A runoff is organised if the top two candidates have an equal number of votes.
For the office of Presidents of the County Councils, between 2008 and 2012, and again since 2024, the first pass the post system was used. Until 2008 and again since 2016,[4] the County Council Presidents have been indirectly elected by each County Council.
To elect the Local, and County Councils, the closed party list proportional representation, with a 5% threshold of the votes at the constituency level (city, commune or county).
Voting procedures
[edit]Irrespective of the type of election, the vote is done by using paper and manual counting. The voter is required to prove his/hers identity using the Identity card (or the previous version, the Identity bulletin), or, for special reasons, the military ID or the passport. After (s)he signs in the permanent, supplemental, or special electoral list, (s)he is handed a voting ballot (buletin de vot) and a stamp that reads VOTAT YYYY TTT (voted); YYYY stands for the year the election is held, and TTT for the type of elections to be held: L for local elections (including partial), P presidential elections, PE for European Parliament election, R for referendums (R.V.U. was used in 2007). For the general election, up to now, there was no additional type indicator, as it is granted most importance.
For the local and parliamentary elections, the voter can vote only at the polling station where (s)he has the permanent address (domiciliu), or the temporary residence (flotant) at least three months old. For the local election, the Romanians outside Romania cannot vote. For the parliamentary election they vote the candidates for the 43rd constituency. For the European Parliament and presidential elections the voters can vote at a different pooling station than the local and parliamentary elections, but only if (s)he is not in the home-town the voting day. Since the 2016 legislative election the Romanian electors residing abroad will be able to cast their vote via mail.[5]
The voting ballot is printed on newspaper paper, monochrome. All the candidates (or the full candidate list) are listed in a lottery type established order (first the parliamentary parties, than the non-parliamentary parties, and at the end, the independent candidates), each in a clearly designated rectangular that consists of the full party/alliance name and logo, and the full candidate name (or full list of candidates' names). Voters express their choice by stamping the rectangle of the party or independent candidate (s)he wishes to vote for. For referendums the same voting procedure is used. Each of the two options (YES – DA and NO – NU) are in a 5×5 cm square, YES on top and NO at the bottom, and the question voted for in the middle of the voting ballot.
Fairness
[edit]Freedom House in 2024 wrote that the legal framework "generally provides for fair and competitive elections".[6] According to the Bertelsmann Transformation Index in 2024, Romanian elections "are generally free and fair, with occasional evidence of fraud, unethical campaigning or voter manipulation, especially in poor rural areas."[7]
Electoral irregularities and political clientelism have been documented in multiple Romanian elections.[8][9] According to Politico in 2025, some local politicians have engaged in vote buying or threats to cut off constituents' income in order to get votes, and while this is illegal, "authorities have often turned a blind eye".[10] A notable conviction for election fraud was that of Social Democratic Party minister Liviu Dragnea in 2015.[11]
Recent elections
[edit]Election schedule
[edit]| Election type | Date | Second round date |
|---|---|---|
| Local | June 9, 2024 | — |
| Legislative | December 1, 2024 | — |
| European | June 9, 2024 | — |
| Presidential | May 4, 2025 | May 18, 2025 |
Latest elections
[edit]
Presidential
[edit]| Candidate | Party | First round | Second round | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Votes | % | Votes | % | |||
| George Simion | Alliance for the Union of Romanians | 3,862,761 | 40.96 | 5,339,053 | 46.40 | |
| Nicușor Dan | Independent | 1,979,767 | 20.99 | 6,168,642 | 53.60 | |
| Crin Antonescu | Romania Forward Electoral Alliance | 1,892,930 | 20.07 | |||
| Victor Ponta | Independent | 1,230,164 | 13.04 | |||
| Elena Lasconi | Save Romania Union | 252,721 | 2.68 | |||
| Lavinia Șandru | Social Liberal Humanist Party | 60,682 | 0.64 | |||
| Daniel Funeriu | Independent | 49,604 | 0.53 | |||
| Cristian Terheș | Romanian National Conservative Party | 36,445 | 0.39 | |||
| Sebastian Popescu | New Romania Party | 25,994 | 0.28 | |||
| John Ion Banu | Independent | 22,020 | 0.23 | |||
| Silviu Predoiu | National Action League Party | 17,186 | 0.18 | |||
| Total | 9,430,274 | 100.00 | 11,507,695 | 100.00 | ||
| Valid votes | 9,430,274 | 98.52 | 11,507,695 | 98.85 | ||
| Invalid/blank votes | 141,466 | 1.48 | 134,171 | 1.15 | ||
| Total votes | 9,571,740 | 100.00 | 11,641,866 | 100.00 | ||
| Registered voters/turnout | 17,988,031 | 53.21 | 17,988,218 | 64.72 | ||
| Source: Permanent Electoral Authority[12][13] | ||||||
European Parliament
[edit].svg) | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Party | Votes | % | Seats | +/– | |
| PSD–PNL Alliance | 4,341,686 | 48.55 | 19 | – | |
| AUR Alliance | 1,334,905 | 14.93 | 6 | New | |
| United Right Alliance | 778,901 | 8.71 | 3 | – | |
| Democratic Alliance of Hungarians in Romania | 579,180 | 6.48 | 2 | – | |
| S.O.S. Romania | 450,040 | 5.03 | 2 | New | |
| Renewing Romania's European Project | 334,703 | 3.74 | 0 | New | |
| United Diaspora Party | 159,943 | 1.79 | 0 | New | |
| Social Liberal Humanist Party | 132,402 | 1.48 | 0 | New | |
| Patriots Party | 65,440 | 0.73 | 0 | New | |
| Greater Romania Party | 59,272 | 0.66 | 0 | – | |
| The Right Alternative | 40,281 | 0.45 | 0 | New | |
| Socialist Romania Alliance (PSR–PSDM) | 37,119 | 0.42 | 0 | – | |
| Independents | 628,754 | 7.03 | 1 | – | |
| Total | 8,942,626 | 100.00 | 33 | +1 | |
| Valid votes | 8,942,626 | 94.82 | |||
| Invalid/blank votes | 488,551 | 5.18 | |||
| Total votes | 9,431,177 | 100.00 | |||
| Registered voters/turnout | 18,025,329 | 52.32 | |||
| Source: BEC | |||||
Legislative
[edit]The incumbent National Coalition for Romania (PSD and PNL) lost their majority in both chambers in the election, with far-right parties (AUR, SOS RO, and POT) making substantial gains at their expense.
Chamber of Deputies
[edit]
Senate
[edit]
Local
[edit]| Political party/alliance | County-level | U.A.T.-level | ||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| County Council Presidents | County Council Councilors | Mayors | Local Council Councilors | |||||||||||
| PSD | 25 / 41
|
 5
|
550 / 1,338
|
188
|
1,691 / 3,180
|
16,499 / 39,900
|
2679
| |||||||
_logo.svg){kind=logo}
|
PNL | 12 / 41
|
 5
|
436 / 1,338
|
53
|
1,144 / 3,180
|
12,767 / 39,900
|
1415
| ||||||
|
UDMR / RMDSZ | 4 / 41
|
|
104 / 1,338
|
12
|
200 / 3,180
|
2,524 / 39,900
|
164
| ||||||
| AUR | 0 / 41
|
|
159 / 1,338
|
159
|
30 / 3,180
|
3,526 / 39,900
|
3447
| |||||||
_logo_(transparent).svg){kind=spacer}
|
ADU | USR | 0 / 41
|
|
46 / 1,338
|
62
|
28 / 3,180
|
832 / 39,900
|
375
| |||||
| PMP | 0 / 41
|
|
17 / 1,338
|
48
|
6 / 3,180
|
238 / 39,900
|
1899
| |||||||
| FD | 0 / 41
|
New | 17 / 1,338
|
New | 10 / 3,180
|
New | 254 / 39,900
|
New | ||||||
.svg){kind=small}
|
FDGR / DFDR | 0 / 41
|
|
5 / 1,338
|
|
5 / 3,180
|
52 / 39,900
|
16
| ||||||
| PUSL | 0 / 41
|
|
2 / 1,338
|
2
|
6 / 3,180
|
225 / 39,900
|
59
| |||||||
|
AMT / EMSZ | 0 / 41
|
|
2 / 1,338
|
5
|
4 / 3,180
|
172 / 39,900
|
134
| ||||||
|
REPER | 0 / 41
|
New | 0 / 1,338
|
New | 2 / 3,180
|
New | 54 / 39,900
|
New | |||||
|
AER | PER | 0 / 41
|
|
0 / 1,338
|
5
|
1 / 3,180
|
79 / 39,900
|
295
| |||||
| PV | 0 / 41
|
|
0 / 1,338
|
|
0 / 3,180
|
38 / 39,900
|
79
| |||||||
| Romania in Action | 0 / 41
|
|
0 / 1,338
|
2
|
1 / 3,180
|
1
|
48 / 39,900
|
21
| ||||||
| UIPS | 0 / 41
|
|
0 / 1,338
|
|
1 / 3,180
|
|
TBD | |||||||
| PPR | 0 / 41
|
New | 0 / 1,338
|
New | 1 / 3,180
|
New | TBD | New | ||||||
| BSR | 0 / 41
|
New | 0 / 1,338
|
New | 1 / 3,180
|
New | TBD | New | ||||||
| UUR | 0 / 41
|
|
0 / 1,338
|
|
1 / 3,180
|
|
TBD | |||||||
| UDSCR | 0 / 41
|
|
0 / 1,338
|
|
1 / 3,180
|
|
TBD | |||||||
| PRPE | 0 / 41
|
|
0 / 1,338
|
|
1 / 3,180
|
1
|
TBD | |||||||
| FCM / MPE | 0 / 41
|
New | 0 / 1,338
|
New | 1 / 3,180
|
New | TBD | New | ||||||
|
SOS RO | 0 / 41
|
New | 0 / 1,338
|
New | 0 / 3,180
|
New | 149 / 39,900
|
New | |||||
|
PRO | 0 / 41
|
|
0 / 1,338
|
56
|
0 / 3,176
|
36
|
111 / 39,900
|
1774
| |||||
| PRM | 0 / 41
|
|
0 / 1,338
|
|
0 / 3,180
|
22 / 39,900
|
9
| |||||||
|
POL | 0 / 41
|
|
0 / 1,338
|
2
|
0 / 3,180
|
5 / 39,900
|
30
| ||||||
|
AD | 0 / 41
|
|
0 / 1,338
|
|
0 / 3,180
|
4 / 39,900
|
9
| ||||||
| Curaj | 0 / 41
|
New | 0 / 1,338
|
New | 0 / 3,180
|
New | 3 / 39,900
|
New | ||||||
| Demos | 0 / 41
|
New | 0 / 1,338
|
New | 0 / 3,180
|
New | 1 / 39,900
|
New | ||||||
| Independents | 0 / 41
|
0 / 1,338
|
43 / 3,180
|
0 / 39,900
| ||||||||||
Referendums
[edit]The Constitution of Romania defines that a referendum has to be called to:[14]
- suspend the President from office (article 95), or
- amend the Constitution (article 151)
Moreover, the Constitution defines that a referendum can be called on matters of national interest by the President of Romania after consultation with Parliament (article 90).
There were 8 referendums (and 1 local one) in post-communist Romania:
- 2 constitutional referendums: in 1991 and 2003
- 2 presidential impeachment referendums: in May 2007 and in 2012
- voting system referendum in November 2007
- parliamentary reform referendum in 2009
- referendum regarding the definition of family and another one only in the Olt County to rename it to "Olt-Romanați County" in 2018 at the same time
- referendum about justice and corruption in 2019
There was also 1 referendum in the Socialist Republic of Romania, 3 referendums in the Kingdom of Romania and 2 referendums in the Romanian United Principalities.
See also
[edit]Notes
[edit]References
[edit]- ^ "Romanian court cancels presidential election amid Russian influence fears". Politico. 6 December 2024. Retrieved 6 December 2024.
- ^ "CONSTITUTION OF ROMANIA". cdep.ro.
- ^ a b c d e "Legea nr. 208 din 20 iulie 2015 privind alegerea Senatului şi a Camerei Deputaţilor, precum şi pentru organizarea şi funcţionarea Autorităţii Electorale Permanente" (PDF) (in Romanian). Romanian Permanent Electoral Authority. Retrieved 25 November 2015.
- ^ "Legea alegerilor locale, modificată: Primarii, aleşi într-un singur tur. Preşedinţii CJ, aleşi de către membrii CJ" (in Romanian). 6 May 2016. Retrieved 23 June 2016.
- ^ "Legea votului prin corespondenţă a fost PROMULGATĂ de preşedintele Klaus Iohannis". Mediafax.ro (in Romanian). 19 November 2015.
- ^ "Romania: Freedom in the World 2024 Country Report". Freedom House. 10 August 2019. Retrieved 4 May 2025.
- ^ "BTI 2024 Romania Country Report". BTI 2024. Retrieved 27 May 2025.
- ^ Mares, Isabela; Visconti, Giancarlo (10 June 2019). "Voting for the lesser evil: evidence from a conjoint experiment in Romania" (PDF). Political Science Research and Methods. 8 (2). Cambridge University Press (CUP): 315–328. doi:10.1017/psrm.2019.12. ISSN 2049-8470. Retrieved 27 May 2025.
At the same time, Romanian elections have been characterized by high levels of electoral irregularities and, more significantly for our paper, by a wealth of clientelistic strategies (Kitschelt et al. 2012). Both international organizations monitoring elections (such as the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe) and domestic non-governmental organizations (such as ProDemocratia or RomaniaCurata) have documented these unlawful electoral practices.
- ^ Chiriac, Mara Nicole (27 April 2023). "Election Fraud In Romania". LARC @ Cardozo Law. Retrieved 27 May 2025.
- ^ Paun, Carmen; Cokelaere, Hanne; Griera, Max (3 May 2025). "Who can beat Romanian nationalist presidential candidate George Simion?". POLITICO. Retrieved 4 May 2025.
- ^ "Romania: High Court Sentences Minister in Election Fraud Case". OCCRP. 18 May 2015. Retrieved 27 May 2025.
- ^ "Alegeri prezidențiale – Tur 1" [Presidential Elections – Round 1]. Prezență la vot (in Romanian). 4 May 2025. Retrieved 5 September 2025.
- ^ "Alegeri prezidențiale – Tur 2" [Presidential Elections – Round 2]. Prezență la vot (in Romanian). 18 May 2025. Retrieved 5 September 2025.
- ^ "Constitution of Romania" (PDF). Party Law in Modern Europe. Retrieved 5 November 2013.
Sources
[edit]External links
[edit]- Report on 30 November 2008 election results
- Adam Carr's Election Archive
- Parties and elections
- Report on new Uninominal System
| Parliamentary elections |
|
|---|---|
| Presidential elections | |
| Local elections | |
| European elections | |
| Other elections | |
| Referendums | |
