As expected, the current Romanian president, Traian Basescu, will face the leader of the Social Democratic Party, Mircea Geoana, in a second round run off on December 6th. Both men polled around 30 per cent in yesterday’s first round of voting, with Liberal Crin Antonescu third, with around 22 per cent. The final, actual results will be announced on Tuesday.
As predicted by just about everybody, there was allegedly much electoral tourism (as it is called in these parts) with people voting two, three or four times. As many as five per cent of those who voted did so on what are known as supplementary lists: that is, they voted somewhere other than where they are supposed to. There were queues all day at a special polling station at Gara de Nord, set up for people ‘in transit.’
Voting twice (or three or four times) in Romania is – though technically illegal – basically very easy: you vote early in your home polling station, then head off to a few others, saying at each that you are on a trip/day out/holiday and can’t make it back home in time to vote. Many mayors – keen to get up the party ladder – arrange voting days out, laying on transport, food and drink for the happy voters. Hence the term electoral tourism.
Given that five per cent of the vote will probably win or lose one of the two candidates the second round, these things are important. And what’s more, there is a simple way to stamp out such practices: you vote at your home polling station, or you do not vote.
In the UK, unless you make arrangements well in advance to vote either by post or by proxy, then if you are not at home on election day then that’s tough: you can’t vote at all. There is, as a result, no electoral tourism, and voting twice is physically impossible.
Electoral tourism will continue in Romania until the insane practice of letting people vote more or less where they like is stopped. The rule should be simple, and strict: if you are not at home on election day and can’t vote in your own, designated polling station, tough. You can’t vote. However, as the two main parties are (allegedly) the biggest culprits of the electoral tourism system, don’t expect any change at all soon.
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@Parmalat Yes, Antonescu won Bucharest, beating Basescu by a good couple of percentage points. Alas the rest of the country gets to vote too…
I spent the last night together with some friends of mine, PNL officials, waiting for the results to come from their college in Bucharest. Although I’m PSD, we’re very good friends and a small alliance emerged last night
Especially after all the results came and in the college in which they were elected Senator and Deputy, Crin Antonescu won by quite a margin.
After that, at 6 o’clock in the morning, I had to go to mayor Vanghelie’s city hall in order to co-ordinate the remainder of the process of validating the votes in Sector 5. It was quite a mess, the presidents of the sections where the votes were casted had to come to Biroul Electoral Municipal together with 3-4 bags of votes and the signed minute of the election process. Some of them arrived a 1 o’clock in the night and left at 1 o’clock the next day. Most of them were students who literally fell asleep over the bags of votes. When will they stop doing things by using unexperienced people in this country?! The poor students hardly knew how to complete the minute of the electoral process, they forgot to place stamps where needed, etc…
Unfortunately I couldn’t find mayor Vanghelie because I was invested with power of attorney to negotiate an alliance between PNL and PSD
Students in Romania would not vote if this rule was applied. Given the lack of interest Romanians have for the voting process, do you really think anyone would bother registering? Of course, certain people/parties would be happy if that happened.
@Geronimo: Answer is I have no idea how easy it is to vote anywhere other than where you are supposed to elsewhere in the world. Quite tough I think, which makes me think the Romanians are indeed making it all up on their own. I blame Ceausescu.
Wow. I didn’t know this particular bit of romanian ridiculousness. Is this system used anywhere else or did they make it up all on their own?
Of course they could still vote. They register as voters in the cities in which they are studying. Simple.
Students in Romania could not vote if this rules you suggest was applied, and they are ones voting for your Antonescu.
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