Romania's Social Democrats convene leading council to reevaluate participation in government alliance

The Romanian coalition government, led by Prime Minister Ilie Bolojan, is currently experiencing a period of strain due to a disagreement between the Social Democratic Party (PSD) and the reformist party USR. The source of the dispute is the USR's opposition to a decree for a national day of mourning for former president Ion Iliescu.

PSD, under the interim presidency of Sorin Grindeanu, has boycotted formal meetings of the ruling coalition in response to this disagreement. Grindeanu announced on August 11, 2025, that PSD would not attend coalition meetings until several policy demands are met, including eliminating privileges such as special pensions, reducing state agencies, and maintaining public investment programs like Anghel Saligny.

Despite this boycott, PSD remains part of the coalition and has not formally withdrawn. By mid-August 2025, PSD showed signs of easing tensions by broadly agreeing with the government's second reform package led by Prime Minister Bolojan, although some details remained unresolved. PSD stressed the need for greater economic stimulus and continued investment funding, criticizing certain proposed budgetary measures as not consensual and technically impractical.

MP Marius Budai, a member of PSD, has suggested that lawmakers from Moldova's counties should vote on a future no-confidence motion against the government if the construction works on the A7 and A8 motorways, connecting Moldova's counties to more developed parts of Romania, are halted. This suggestion comes as funding for the motorway works is uncertain, as a large volume of contracts compete for the transport budget under the Multiannual Financial Framework (MFF) budget.

The potential consequences of a no-confidence motion against the government, if filed, were not mentioned in the article. The USR's actions affecting the governmental balance, as mentioned earlier, are in relation to the opposition of the reformist party USR to the decree of a national day of mourning for former president Ion Iliescu.

The meeting summoned by Sorin Grindeanu on August 11 is to analyze the "situation created in the governing coalition" due to the opposition of the USR to the decree of a national day of mourning for Ion Iliescu. The meeting aims to assess the impact of these events on the functioning of the governing Coalition and to establish a clear position of the party in relation to the continuation of governmental collaboration.

The regional groups within the Social Democratic Party are positioning themselves ahead of the party congress and are ready to negotiate with potential candidates. Among the potential candidates is Titus Corlatean, a possible group backed by former prime ministers Adrian Nastase and Victor Ponta, who has announced his candidacy for the presidency of the Social Democratic Party.

This news article presents a snapshot of the current situation in Romania's coalition government, highlighting the ongoing tensions between PSD and USR, and the potential implications for the country's infrastructure projects and governing coalition.

[1] Romania Insider, "PSD to boycott coalition meetings until several policy demands are met," August 11, 2025. [2] Agerpres, "PSD agrees with gov't's second reform package, but with reservations," August 15, 2025. [3] Romania Journal, "Marius Budai suggests no-confidence motion against gov't if motorway works halted," August 18, 2025. [4] Balkan Insight, "Romania's PSD Leverages Boycott to Push Policy Priorities," August 20, 2025. [5] Ziarul Financiar, "PSD insists on maintaining public investment programs like Anghel Saligny," August 22, 2025.