Romania: a provisional government for a permanent crisis

Romania: a provisional government for a permanent crisis October 21, 2026 Romania is one of the European Union countries with the most changes of government and governmental crises. In the last ten years, it has had eleven different prime ministers, not counting interim heads of government. This is added to frequent cabinet reorganizations and changes in the direction of ministries. The most recent government crisis in the country began on April 20 when the social democrats withdrew from the four-party coalition. This was followed by three attempts to form a new government, all of which failed. Exactly six months later, and in the fourth attempt, the crisis ended on Tuesday (10/20/2026) in the afternoon. The Romanian Parliament elected the provisional and independent politician and diplomat Luca Niculescu, aged 55, as prime minister by a large majority. He was ambassador to France from 2016 to 2022 and later state secretary in the Ministry of Foreign Affairs. With this, Romania has a prime minister and a government capable of acting again. However, only provisionally and with certain limitations. Support is only conditional The Europeanist Luca Niculescu and his cabinet were elected with 280 out of the 338 votes cast in the two chambers of Parliament: the Senate and the Chamber of Deputies. Among those who voted in favor of Niculescu's government are the Social Democratic Party (PSD), the National Liberal Party (PNL), and the Hungarian Democratic Alliance of Romania (UDMR). However, the government is a minority cabinet, supported only by the social democrats. Of the 18 ministers, eleven belong to the PSD, while seven, like the prime minister, belong to no party. The national-liberals and the Hungarian party UDMR only want to support the new government for a few months and do so with certain conditions. The leaders of both parties signed separate agreements with Luca Niculescu on this matter in the last days. Historical stagnation of reforms Therefore, the new government is based on a fragile foundation. At first glance, the wavering support for Niculescu's cabinet is due to the electoral tactical considerations of the established parties. However, the causes of the general situation lie, ultimately, in the widespread and deep distrust that a large part of the population feels towards the political class, something to which it does not take any action. In Romania there is a long-standing, almost historical stagnation of reforms in administration and public finances, infrastructure projects, education and health sectors, and the fight against corruption. Because the country offers very few prospects for a life with secure conditions to large sectors of the population, millions of Romanians work abroad. The responsible for this situation is largely, but not solely, the traditionally strongest party until now, the Social Democrat PSD. It is a clientelist party of communist origin, and it is seen by many people in Romania as a symbol of corruption. It has proven incapable of carrying out the necessary reforms and, for years, has tried to win voters from the right spectrum with populist-nationalist right-wing positions. Endure until the elections The maneuvering room of the new prime minister is limited, given these circumstances. After his election on Tuesday, Luca Niculescu -who, in his last position as deputy state secretary negotiated Romania's planned accession to the OECD- called on all coalition supporters: "There are many problems that must be resolved urgently. Romania can no longer wait." However, Romanian observers doubt that his appeal will be heard. The political scientist Sorin Ionita wrote in an article for the Romanian portal Contributors: "Although Luca Niculescu will formally lead the government, there are no illusions that he can make the PSD change its mind on anything." The political scientist Cristian Pirvulescu shares this opinion. According to Pirvulescu, most important decisions will be postponed until the 2028 elections. (gg/cp) Don't let the algorithm hide the news. If you trust that site for reliable information, please take a moment to select us as your preferred source on Google: click here and check the box or press the DW.com button to always see our verified news in your preferences.