An entire country is held hostage by the PSD crisis, a disoriented party ravaged by corruption and internal struggles, with dwindling public support.
Exploiting the fact that, in 2024, in a political landscape distorted by the cancellation of the presidential elections, it obtained the largest number of parliamentarians, it is trying to maximize its chances regarding the control of the Luca Niculescu Government.
Sorin Grindeanu hoped that President Nicușor Dan would designate him to form a new executive, and now his frustration, as well as that of some social-democratic leaders, is visible.
After the nomination of Luca Niculescu, the leadership of the PSD decided to play the "breakup" card, according to several political sources consulted for the writing of this article.
The Social Democrats' strategy is to put pressure on the liberals, to attract as many "putschists" as possible to associate with the PSD and create a new USL.
It goes as far as, in some circles within the party, discussing even the change of the name, a new formation in which the liberal putschists can also be found, a relaunch for 2028.
It should not be overlooked that President Nicușor Dan is also in search of a "presidential party."
"...the PNȚ was and is a Christian-democratic party and, when we see the waves of hatred pervading our society at every opportunity, we see how much those Christian values of loving one's neighbor or at least respecting others are needed, while maintaining, of course, the secular nature of the state," stated Nicușor Dan, the President of Romania, present at the event dedicated to the Centenary of the National Peasant Party.
His participation indicates the attachment of the head of state to the conservative and Christian ideology of the PNȚ, as well as the fact that he still has on his agenda the consolidation of a political movement to support him in the context where, in 2030, he will aim for a second term.
The domino effect
Sorin Grindeanu aims for at least a new USL, if not a brand-new party, a vehicle through which to save both the current PSD and himself, while Nicușor Dan is also looking for a formation that understands and supports him.
In this context, the leader of the Social Democrats has decided to play on the edge and put on the table the topic of "early elections."
"If the scenario of early elections is set in motion, which I do not see as a good one for Romania, but which may be unavoidable, I want to be as clear as possible: that's why we are making these preparations. We will start a domino effect that, at some point, will be unstoppable. Not only would the economic recovery be postponed, but the entire economy, from our assessments, would risk becoming a ruin after 3-4 months of political battles, until the early elections," stated Sorin Grindeanu after the meeting of the National Permanent Bureau of the PSD.
The agitation of the Social Democrats appears more like a bluff, when you raise the stakes but do not hold valuable cards in hand.
In reality, Sorin Grindeanu knows that he has no other solution than to vote for the government. Also, he is aware that the PNL will not offer the Luca Niculescu government more than an "installation vote," as Ilie Bolojan called it. He will not receive even that from USR.
The noise made by the PSD is actually an attempt to blame the PNL for not rebuilding the old governing coalition.
Disoriented liberal putschists
Sorin Grindeanu, as well as other party leaders, are aware that they have no other solution than to vote for the Luca Niculescu government, but they do not want to bear the political consequences of the failures recorded by a weak executive, with limited support in Parliament, which must continue to strictly control public spending.
For this reason, the PSD has put on the table "preparation for early elections," although they know that, in case of organization, the party will be around 15%, according to the most optimistic estimates based on real figures.
"People are desperate, and you should know that right now they no longer differentiate between parties. They no longer look at the petty calculations made by some of my colleagues, who benefits from what, no," stated Rareș Bogdan, Member of the European Parliament, the spokesperson for the putschists in the PNL.
In recent days, the former TV star has been intensively campaigning to support the Government of Luca Niculescu, but his credibility is not very high anymore, and many of the liberal parliamentarians who voted for Adrian Veștea, the so-called putschists, have remained in suspense.
"Lord, govern already, because we can't take it anymore. Business people can't take it anymore, entrepreneurs can't take it anymore, pensioners are desperate, and those who think about the future of their children think that prices have skyrocketed...", Rareș Bogdan added in his attempt to create a favorable public opinion trend for parliamentary support for the new government.
Six-month agreement
The one who could truly put pressure on the political parties, on the parliamentarians to vote for the government is President Nicușor Dan, who has so far remained silent.
He has not sent any message, made any statement urging the vote for the Luca Niculescu Government, nor has he spoken about the importance of exiting the prolonged political crisis, as Rareș Bogdan has done.
No public signal has come from the Cotroceni Palace, although the president has the lever he can use - that of dissolving Parliament.
Furthermore, the government is more likely to pass through Parliament than to fall. On Thursday, Luca Niculescu will submit the list of ministers and the government program, and the vote will take place at the beginning of next week.
"...I believe we need a committed political agreement for at least six months, around several essential objectives: budget rectification, adoption of the budget for next year, measures regarding energy and protecting the vulnerable, economic recovery, improving revenue collection for the budget, and strengthening Romania's defense capacity in a complicated international context, with a war at our borders...", announced Luca Niculescu, the designated Prime Minister, in a social media post.
Most likely, an agreement will be attempted to be signed for half a year, in which the political parties from the old coalition will commit not to submit a motion of no confidence under certain conditions, in order to create the possibility of taking urgent administrative measures and adopting the budget law for the next year.
In Romanian politics, many agreements have been signed and broken, so there are no guarantees that, in the event that it is voted on, the Government of Luca Niculescu will last at least six months.