The Romanian political party system is diverse and complex. Liberalism, socialism, nationalism and fascism all influence the decision-making process, and all have their role in politics. In 1989, the death of Ceausescu and the collapse of Communism released new political ideas, and absolutely everybody wanted to speak at once. Almost ten years on, diversity remains, battles are fought and coalitions forged. Stability is minimal, and this is even more so with general elections scheduled for next year.
Political diversity is represented in the present ruling coalition itself.
Remarkably, the relative calm within the coalition has been considerable despite diverse political opinions. This was hardly the case with the previous coalition. By 1995, internal bickering had become more apparent, and several parties left this political alliance after the failure of a Co-operation Agreement. Flirting with the extremes Ironically, many of the former CDR parties now cater for the more extreme elements of society. Its alliances are now with the Liberal Democratic Party and the Democratic Republican Party, which are not represented in Parliament.