Romania’s Social Democrats back Sorin Grindeanu for prime minister

Romania’s Social Democrats will back Sorin Grindeanu for prime minister, tightening the scramble in Bucharest as parties try to avoid a second collapse that could trigger snap elections. The move gives the Social Democratic Party more leverage in a fractured parliament, where no bloc has enough seats to govern alone.

The party’s intervention comes after Romania’s pro-European coalition fell apart in May, when the Social Democrats withdrew support for Prime Minister Ilie Bolojan and then joined the far-right Alliance for the Union of Romanians in a no-confidence vote that passed 281 to four on May 5, 2026. That vote toppled Bolojan’s government.

The pressure now centers on whether President Nicușor Dan can assemble a cabinet that survives parliamentary scrutiny. He ruled out snap elections immediately after the government fell, but the deadlock deepened on June 22 when prime minister-designate Adrian Veștea failed to win a confidence vote. Under Romanian law, the president can dissolve parliament and call an early election if two prime minister-designates fail to secure backing within 60 days, and the next scheduled parliamentary election is not until 2028.

The standoff threatened Romania’s access to European Union funds and its credit ratings, while markets have already reacted to the instability. Any snap election would prolong the uncertainty over tax policy, spending cuts and the wider austerity program that helped bring down the coalition in the first place.

The PSD’s support for Grindeanu is meant to preserve influence in the next government, not just settle a personnel dispute.