(Angus Reid Global Monitor) - A new party created by supporters of Romanian president Traian Basescu could overshadow all other political organizations in the European country, according to a poll by CURS. 36 per cent of respondents would vote for the Democratic Liberal Party (PD-L) in the next legislative ballot.

The Social Democratic Party (PSD) is second with 25 per cent, followed by the National Liberal Party (PNL) with 14 per cent, and the Hungarian Democratic Alliance of Romania (UDMR) with six per cent. Support is lower for the New Generation Party (PNG), the Party of Great Romania (PRM), the Conservative Party (PC), the National Initiative Party (PIN), and the National Peasant Christian-Democratic Party (PNT-CD).

The Alliance for Justice and Truth (DA)—comprising the Democratic Party (PD) and the PNL—won the November 2004 parliamentary election, securing 132 seats in the 332-member Chamber of Deputies. DA candidate Basescu won the presidential run-off in December 2004 with 51.23 per cent of the vote, defeating PSD contender Adrian Nastase. Basescu later appointed fellow alliance member Calin Popescu Tariceanu as prime minister.

In December 2006, several members of the PNL—including former prime minister Theodor Stolojan—assembled as the Liberal-Democrats (PLD) to protest the leadership of Tariceanu. This month, the PLD will officially merge with the PD to form the PD-L. The organization will join the European People’s Party (EPP) and retain Emil Boc as its leader.

On Jan. 6, UDMR executive president Kelemen Hunor saluted the merger, saying, "I think that things entered to a normal path, PD and PLD have been together until now. We wish them success and happy marriage. It is a sincere blessing because you do not have to talk to two partners anymore that actually mean a single one, now you talk directly to president Basescu when you talk to the party."

The next legislative election is tentatively scheduled for November 2008.

Polling Data

If general (parliamentary) elections were held next Sunday, for what political party you would vote?
(Decided Voters)

Source: CURS
Methodology: Interviews with 1,159 Romanian adults, conducted from Dec. 18 to Dec. 30, 2007. Margin of error is 2.9 per cent.

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