33 research outputs found
Crowd-sourced legislation and politics: the legitimacy of constitutional deliberation in Romania
Constitutional reform is a tedious process that requires long periods of time, a relatively broad consensus among political actors, and, often, popular approval. In spite of these, Romania has changed its constitution once (2003) and witnessed several unsuccessful revisions. The most recent attempt, in 2013, introduced a deliberative dimension in the form of a constitutional forum. This article investigates the legitimacy of this deliberative practice using a tri-dimensional approach: input, throughput, and output legitimacy. Our qualitative study relying on direct observation and secondary data analysis concludes that, although input and throughput legitimacy were achieved to a great extent, the output legitimacy was low
Introduction: democratic deliberation and under-represented groups
The key principles of democratic deliberation are the considered judgement and inclusion. However, research shows that not all categories are involved in this process. In particular, the groups that are under-represented in day-to-day politics are also less likely to make their voice heard in deliberation. So far, we know little about if and how deliberation fosters the involvement of under-represented groups. This symposium aims to address this gap in the literature and seeks to generate new ideas on the topic. It brings two contributions to the debate about the involvement of under-represented groups in deliberation: it identifies the means through which various deliberative practices can involve members of under-represented groups and explains how and why members of under-represented groups participate or refuse/are refused participation in deliberation
Religion, homosexuality, and the EU: grasping the beliefs of Romanian orthodox priests
The European Union and the Church often have contrasting positions toward the rights, freedoms, and status of sexual minorities. Earlier research illustrates that the Church opposes the EU as a promoter of homosexuality and brings a critique based on national identity. In spite of these debates, we know very little about how the priests perceive the relationship between homosexuality and the EU. The priests' beliefs and opinions can provide insights into what is beyond the official Church statements. This article seeks to address that gap in the literature and analyzes the ways in which the Romanian Orthodox priests link the EU and the topic of homosexuality. Our qualitative study uses inductive thematic analysis and draws on 18 semi-structured interviews conducted with priests in December 2020âFebruary 2021. The findings indicate the existence of three main points of criticism against what the respondents perceive as an increasing pressure by the EU to adopt a favorable treatment of homosexuals
Faith in a new party: the involvement of the Romanian Orthodox Church in the 2020 election campaign
The intensity and nature of ties between the Church and political parties was covered by a rich literature. However, we know relatively little about why the Church would support a newly emerged political party formed in a competitive space, in which other parties had in the past enjoyed the Churchâs support. This article aims to explain why many members of the Romanian Orthodox Church campaigned for the Alliance for the Union of Romanians (AUR) in the 2020 legislative elections. Our analysis relies on 18 semi-structured interviews conducted with Orthodox priests from different parts of the country. The findings illustrate that the traditionalist priests supported the party. These priests felt cornered by the existing anti-clerical attitudes in Romanian society, declared themselves disappointed by the mainstream parties for abandoning the Church, and perceived the EU as a threat to the traditional Romanian values and way of life
AU POUVOIR PAR LE PEUPLE. Le populisme saisi par la théorie du discours
International audienceThe charismatic personalization of power, the use of tele-politics now on the internet, rampant anti-elitism, participatory debates (face-to-face or online), referendum fever, citizen and popular flash mobs, "People-isation" of public space, the exaltation of the virtues of ordinary people - this is too short a list of the developments that have taken place in Russia as well as in the United States, both in Brazil and in Indonesia, both in France than in Romania. With this proliferation of alternative forms of collective expression and public communication, populist (or rather neo-populist) logic is making its way through its flexibility (âcatch-allâ) and its availability to take individuals and , therefore, the People, such as they are.In this essay, the author offers a framework for analyzing the populist phenomenon and the passage from populism to neo-populism by employing a methodology that falls within the theory of discourse.La personnalisation charismatique du pouvoir, lâemploi de la tĂ©lĂ©-politique dĂ©sormais sur internet, lâantiĂ©litisme rampant, les dĂ©bats participatifs (face-Ă -face ou en ligne), la fiĂšvre rĂ©fĂ©rendaire, les flash-mobs citoyens et populaires, la « people-isation » de lâespace publique, lâexaltation des vertus des gens ordinaires â voilĂ une liste trop courte des Ă©volutions qui ont eu lieu tant en Russie quâaux Etats-Unis, tant au BrĂ©sil quâen IndonĂ©sie, tant en France quâen Roumanie. Avec cette prolifĂ©ration des formes alternatives dâexpression collective et de communication publique, la logique populiste (ou plutĂŽt nĂ©o-populiste) se fraye un large chemin grĂące Ă sa flexibilitĂ© (« fourre-tout ») et Ă sa disponibilitĂ© de prendre les individus et, donc, le Peuple, tel quâil est. Dans cet essai, lâauteur offre une grille dâanalyse du phĂ©nomĂšne populiste et du passage du populisme au nĂ©o-populisme en employant une mĂ©thodologie qui relĂšve de la thĂ©orie du discours
âNever just a local warâ: explaining the failure of a mayorâs recall referendum
International audienc
A Rising Populist Star: The Emergence and Development of the PPDD in Romania
International audienc
Quâest-ce que le nĂ©o-populisme? Quelques expliquations factuelles pour un Ă©claircissement thĂ©orique
International audienc
Eine Geschichte von Spaltungen und Fusionen. Politische Parteien und Wahlen in RumÀnien, 1990 bis 2021
International audienc
The Failure of Cohabitation
International audienceBuilt on concurrent claims of legitimacy, the semi-presidential constitutional framework is prone to conflicts between the office holders. Cohabitation is a particular instance in which the presidentâs party is not represented in government and he has to share executive power with a prime minister. Instead of producing a flexible dual-authority structure within the executive, cohabitation has always tended to generate institutional crises in Romania, ending with the impeachment of the president (2007 and 2012). This article identifies a combination of four factors leading to this outcome: legislative ambiguity, the composition of the legislature, the absence of external pressures, and the leadersâ personality