Will Romania’s Parliament have fewer members?
Romanian senators passed draft legislation to cut the number of Parliament members to 300 from 465.
Leyla Cheamil, 04.11.2025, 13:50
The Romanian Senate approved through tacit consent and without debate a bill to cut the number of MPs from 465 to 300. The legislation was initiated by the Save Romania Union, in government alongside the Social Democratic Party, the National Liberal Party and the Democratic Union of Ethnic Hungarians in Romania. On 13th October, the senators approved an extension to the debate deadline from 45 to 60 days to avoid tacit consent, but the new deadline also expired. The legislation will next be submitted to the Chamber of Deputies, which is the decision-making body in this case.
A referendum was held way back in 2009 initiated by the then president Traian Băsescu on the reduction of the number of MPs and another on moving to a single-chamber Parliament. Romanian voters went for the reduction in the number of Parliament seats, but their wish has not been made into law yet.
Senate speaker Mircea Abrudean, a member of the National Liberal Party, says the coalition is now in favour of cutting the number of MPs. He added that the bill initiated by the Save Romania Union has what he described as “a number of legal flaws” and it remains to be seen how they will be addressed. What’s important in his opinion is to clearly state that the coalition is in favour of cutting the number of Parliament seats, which needs to be communicated and established in some way or another. “If we leave things in limbo, we won’t be able to inspire trust”, said Abrudean when asked about the subject.
The leader of the Save Romania Union MPs Ştefan Pălărie says the bill on the cut in the number of MPs will most likely be delayed indefinitely in the Chamber of Deputies, adding that not complying with citizens’ wish will lead to extremism. He warned that his party’s initiative is based on the will of the people for a leaner Parliament, as expressed in a referendum. Moreover, a population census shows the population has decreased. “I am urging the old political class in Romania: don’t play with democracy. When you have the will of the people and laws to transpose that will into legislation, but you hide them in the drawer, you simply generate extremism”, said Pălărie.
From the opposition, the leader of the populist Alliance for the Union of Romanians, Petrişor Peiu, said his party is in favour of any legislative initiative aiming to reduce the number of MPs to 300. He criticised the principle agreement among certain coalition parties to reduce that number only by 10%, as proposed by the Democratic Union of Ethnic Hungarians in Romania. “We believe it’s a grave signal sent to society. At a time when businesses and citizens are asked to make financial sacrifices, the state is unable to sacrifice its own political class”, Petrișor Peiu added.
