Surprise ‘Gold’ Rush Hurtles Right-Wing Party Into Thick Of Romanian Politics

 | 
12/08/2020

The support that propelled Romania’s little-known, right-wing AUR party into parliament in its inaugural national race may have shocked many, including the more established parties of an ex-president and former prime minister that fell short. But close followers of Romanian society say the warnings were evident ahead of the December 6 elections — from unprecedented fear and frustration about the local handling of a global pandemic to the disenchantment that led to a record-low turnout of under 32 percent. The result has been a 9 percent showing and parliamentary seats for the year-old Alliance for the Unification of Romania (AUR) — a party that ran on a combustible mix of ethno-nationalism and anti-globalization, support for Orthodoxy and anti-LGBT sentiment, and an “anti-system” platform built on populist scorn for the political class. The AUR’s leader, 34-year-old George Simion, is a nationalist rabble-rouser whose stunts and outbursts have previously won him headlines and entry bans but never much success at the ballot box.

Regions: ,

Share this:

Latest Global News

Added on: 03/28/2024
03/27/2024
Nine men were sentenced to death by a Houthi court in Yemen in a mass trial based on “dubious” charges of sodomy, a human …
Added on: 03/28/2024
03/27/2024
Thailand is set to become the first Southeast Asian nation to recognise equal marriage after politicians passed a same-sex marriage bill. The lower house of …
Added on: 03/28/2024
03/27/2024
In what looks like a deliberate bid to redirect intense public scrutiny away from grave allegations implicating her in a seemingly multibillion-shilling corruption scandal, …

Explore LGBTQ+ Issues

Other News from ,

Added on: 03/27/2024
Azerbaijan’s LGBTQI+ community was rocked by the news of yet another murder of a trans woman whose body was found on March 12 on …
Added on: 03/26/2024
Britain’s National Health Service has responded to public pressure by banning puberty blockers for minors, but there is still a long way to go …
Added on: 03/26/2024
Georgia’s ruling party on Monday introduced a bill curtailing LGBT rights, a move seen by opponents as an attempt to boost its popularity ahead …