Coalition woes undermine Romania reform prospects

Significance The motion will be backed by his former coalition partner, the Union to Save Romania (USR), together with the Social Democratic Party (PSD) and the nationalist AUR. Citu recently won the National Liberal Party (PNL) leadership contest. If the no-confidence vote succeeds, as seems likely, President Klaus Iohannis can make two attempts to form a new government. Impacts Romania has Europe’s second-lowest COVID-19 vaccination rate; administrative upheaval may worsen performance further. The main political institutions are fast losing credibility, and this is likely to benefit increasingly influential extreme nationalists. A PNL minority government would prioritise survival over serious reform during its remaining time in power.

Subject Kyrgyzstan's parliamentary elections. Significance Parliamentary elections held on October 4 resulted in victory for the Social Democratic Party of Kyrgyzstan (SDPK), which is aligned with President Almazbek Atambayev. Overall, the poll ended with a strong showing for pro-Russian parties, while the nationalist opposition, split into two competing coalitions (Respublika-Ata Jurt and Butun Kyrgyzstan-Emgek) faired relatively poorly. Impacts The results have provided the president with a chance of building a more coherent majority in parliament. Coalition-building should be easier than in recent past and thus governability should be enhanced. The strong performance of the SDPK and the Kyrgyzstan Party plays into the hands of Russia.


2019 ◽  
Vol 21 (4) ◽  
pp. 746-762
Author(s):  
Dan Keith ◽  
Emma Sanderson-Nash ◽  
Alan Wager

Here, we examine the understudied merger of the Social Democratic Party and the Liberal Party. This systematic study of the process which created the Liberal Democrats in 1988 adds to our understanding of what was a rare but important event in British politics. We demonstrate that it deviated from theoretical accounts of such mergers that stress the need for trust at the elite level. We recognise that inter-party trust can instead develop across the three faces of party organisation. We contribute a new typology for understanding these processes, and argue that existing studies are right to highlight that trust between the party in public office is important but wrong to conclude that its absence precludes mergers from occurring. Instead, we find that a lack of trust between parties in public office restricts the degree of delegation and increases the level of monitoring and formalisation, which can have damaging effects on the parties that emerge.


Subject Public life after local elections. Significance Expectations that public life might get an overdue reform boost have been dashed. The Social Democratic Party (PSD), direct heir of the pre-1989 ruling communists, has enjoyed a major comeback. Having been driven from office by popular anger in 2015, the PSD won a convincing nationwide victory in local elections held in June. With parliamentary elections due by December, the party is now poised to have a central role in shaping Romania's direction. Impacts Restoring political control over the justice system will stimulate corruption which continues to be endemic. Voters are largely pro-Western but demobilised. The economy will suffer as parliament passes pre-election acts that will widen the fiscal deficit.


Significance They have enough seats along with the Hungarian minority party to form a government. But the former communist Social Democratic Party (PSD) and fringe politicians are the main beneficiaries of the general election held on December 6, which revealed deep dissatisfaction with the outgoing minority National Liberal Party (PNL) government, amid a far-right comeback and low turnout. Impacts The COVID-19 crisis has deepened the gulf between much of society and a poorly performing state. Whoever held office in 2020 was likely to have been punished by voters but elite figures' self-serving behaviour continues regardless. If PNL and USR-PLUS do not bury their mutual animosity, PSD or some populist may capture the presidency in 2022.


Significance Romania has one of the highest levels of any EU state of dissatisfaction with the performance of its democracy. Yet in the upcoming elections, voters look likely to give a strong mandate to the Social Democratic Party (PSD), the chief architect of the political system that has prevailed since 1989. Impacts A PSD government may move cautiously for fear of provoking a popular reaction. The independence of the justice system will depend on the vigilance shown by Brussels. A long-delayed shake-up leading to a more coherent pro-reform party now appears likely. The extent of political renewal will depend on the extent to which the large diaspora engages in national affairs.


Subject Update on the German government. Significance Just over one year after the grand coalition between the Christian Democratic Union (CDU), its Bavarian sister party the Christian Social Union (CSU) and the Social Democratic Party (SPD) was renewed, all three parties are preparing for its breakdown by sharpening their profiles. Impacts Conflicts between the coalition parties may deepen if deteriorating economic conditions force hard budgetary choices. Chancellor Angela Merkel’s international influence is likely to decline as her domestic position weakens. Low poll ratings could moderate the parties’ desire for early elections.


2018 ◽  
Vol 0 (0) ◽  
Author(s):  
Mads Thau

Abstract In Denmark, as in other Western European countries, the working class does not vote for social democratic parties to the same extent as before. Yet, what role did the social democratic parties themselves play in the demobilization of class politics? Building on core ideas from public opinion literature, this article differs from the focus on party policy positions in previous work and, instead, focuses on the group-based appeals of the Social Democratic Party in Denmark. Based on a quantitative content analysis of party programs between 1961 and 2004, I find that, at the general level, class-related appeals have been replaced by appeals targeting non-economic groups. At the specific level, the class-related appeals that remain have increasingly been targeting businesses at the expense of traditional left-wing groups such as wage earners, tenants and pensioners. These findings support a widespread hypothesis that party strategy was crucial in the decline of class politics, but also suggests that future work on class mobilization should adopt a group-centered perspective.


2008 ◽  
Vol 41 (3) ◽  
pp. 317-338 ◽  
Author(s):  
Lubomír Kopeček ◽  
Pavel Pšeja

This article attempts to analyze developments within the Czech Left after 1989. Primarily, the authors focus on two questions: (1) How did the Czech Social Democratic Party (ČSSD) achieve its dominance of the Left? (2)What is the relationship between the Social Democrats and the Communist Party of Bohemia and Moravia (KSČM)? We conclude that the unsuccessful attempt to move the KSČM towards a moderate leftist identity opened up a space in which the Social Democrats could thrive, at the same time gradually assuming a pragmatic approach towards the Communists. Moreover, the ability of Miloš Zeman, the leader of the Social Democrats, to build a clear non-Communist Left alternative to the hegemony of the Right during the 1990s was also very important.


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