Hunor Kelemen, President of the Democratic Alliance of Hungarians in Romania (RMDSZ)
Based on a recent survey by the IRES polling company, only four parties would make it into parliament if parliamentary elections were held on Sunday. The largest party of local Hungarians, the Democratic Alliance of Hungarians in Romania (RMDSZ), which is currently a member of parliament and the government, would not be among the four parties. This is noteworthy because the RMDSZ has been elected to parliament in every election since Romania’s 1989 regime change.
Based on the results of the opinion poll published on Monday, the radical nationalist Alliance for the Union of Romanians (AUR), continues to enjoy the greatest popularity among Romanian voters, with 36 percent of those surveyed supporting it.
The Social Democratic Party (PSD) follows in second place with 21 percent.
They are followed by the National Liberal Party (PNL) and the Save Romania Union (USR) with 18 and 11 percent support, respectively.
According to the survey, the other political parties, including the RMDSZ, have support below the five percent threshold. Furthermore, although not mentioned in the MTI report,
according to data published on the IRES website, the RMDSZ received only 2 percent support in the survey, which would place it in seventh place in a parliamentary election held today.
The result is surprising in two respects: firstly, because the RMDSZ has always been represented in the Romanian legislature, and secondly, because the party received 6.4 percent of the vote in last year’s parliamentary elections, meaning it entered parliament relatively easily.
In light of this, the aforementioned 2 percent result seems unrealistically low: although the 2024 result may have been improved by the fact that Hungarians turned out to vote at a higher rate than average, nothing that has happened since then would explain such a sharp decline as shown in the survey – in other words, it is possible that the RMDSZ was underestimated (another research institute, INSCOP, measured much better support for the party at the end of November, although still below the threshold for entry: at that time, the RMDSZ “scored” 4.8 percent).
The IRES survey also included questions about the well-being of Romanians. These revealed that Romanian residents found 2025 to be much more difficult than 2024, which was marked by elections. Although more than 60 percent of them were doing well on a personal level, the uncertainty spreading throughout society had a negative impact on them.
Respondents cited the country’s difficult economic situation and related government decisions as the main sources of stress. 42 percent said their financial situation had deteriorated, and only 21 percent said it had improved.
An exceptionally high proportion of respondents, 72 percent, believe the country is heading in the wrong direction.
According to the survey, the Romanian population has still not moved on from the invalidation of the 2024 presidential election.
The government’s cost-cutting measures also divide the population. 53 percent said that these measures had a negative impact on them.
Based on the IRES survey, Romanians trust politicians the least, while firefighters, doctors, and teachers enjoy the highest regard in society.
According to IRES, the survey was conducted between December 4 and 17 on a nationally representative sample of 1,012 people, and the margin of error is ±3.1 percent.
Fact
Hungarian voters share the majority of the population’s negative sentiment due to the country’s difficult economic situation. According to observers, RMDSZ politicians, as part of the governing coalition, are being blamed for the political and economic crisis. Although these survey results should be treated with caution, they could indicate that Hungarian voters want a change of course, with the direction being of secondary importance.
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Via hirado.hu, Kronika.ro; Featured photo: MTI/Kiss Gábor
The post New Survey Warns of No Parliamentary Seat for Hungarians in Romania appeared first on Hungary Today.
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