Even though they have never lived in a totalitarian regime, many Romanians born between 1990 and 2006 consider dictatorship to be a good political system for their country.
41% of young people aged between 18 and 34 say that dictatorship would be good for Romania. In contrast, only 25% of citizens over 55, who lived through the communist period, would agree for Romania to return to a totalitarian system, according to a report published at the beginning of October by GlobeSec, an international organization founded by the European Union.
The study was conducted on a representative sample of 1,000 people from Romania and analyzes the perception of Romanian citizens regarding the state of the democratic regime, Euro-Atlantic integration, and the regional and international geopolitical situation.
"This indicates that young people feel that democracy does not suit them, while older citizens may be more resentful of their experiences with the regime before 1989.
Another explanation is the European trend of illiberal far-right parties having more influence over young voters. This is partially generated by the successes of far-right leaders on social networks, but young people's uncertainty about their own future likely plays a much more important role," the report states.
Overall, over a third of Romanians (36%) believe that a totalitarian system could be good for their country.
In December 2023, a survey conducted by INSCOP for News.ro showed that 48.1% of Romanians believed that the communist regime was a good thing for Romania, a higher percentage than ten years ago. Additionally, over 46% of Romanians believed that life was better before '89 compared to the current situation.
The GlobeSec report now shows that the majority of Romanian respondents (81%) approve of democracy as a concept based on equality, rule of law, and human rights. However, only 41% are satisfied with the way democracy currently functions in Romania.
The Army remains the most trusted institution, with 76%, followed by the Government (48%), Parliament (44%), and Presidency (41%). The Church was not included in the study.
The level of trust in the media is 67% among those over 55 and 42% among respondents aged between 18 and 34. According to the study, the higher the level of education, the less likely they are to trust the mass media, with trust decreasing from 67% among those who have not completed high school to 47% among those with higher education.
83% of Romanians support the country's membership in the EU, and 88% support NATO membership, percentages close to those in 2023. However, over 70% of Romanians believe that the EU dictates what they should do without the country being able to influence this. At the same time, 65% believe that, due to EU membership, Romania plays a much more important role in the global economy.
Additionally, 78% of Romanians believe that NATO membership makes it less likely for a foreign country to attack Romania, and 71% believe that the European Union should create its own army that is less dependent on the United States.
Regarding the geopolitical situation, most subjects (73%) believe that Russia poses a threat to our country. 24% consider China a threat to Romania, and 14% indicated the United States.