A recent nationwide IPSOS poll, reflecting public sentiment in October 2025, has delivered a seismic shock to Romania’s democratic foundations: only 3% of citizens express trust in their political class. This figure is not just a measure of popularity; it is a declaration of a profound and systemic crisis of legitimacy that actively sabotages the very concept of Good Governance in Romania.
The data reveals the depth of public disillusionment: an overwhelming 82% of Romanians state they have no confidence in politicians. This scepticism extends to key executive bodies, with confidence in the sitting government plunging to a mere 6%. Such extreme political alienation makes the implementation of sound policy, necessary for sustained development, nearly impossible.
The Vicious Cycle of Distrust
Good Governance is built upon fundamental pillars: Transparency, Accountability, Effectiveness, and Responsiveness. When public trust collapses to 3%, the mechanism of effective governing breaks down across every one of these axes:
Sabotaging Accountability and Transparency
In a climate of profound distrust, the public operates on a default assumption that political action is driven by self-interest and corruption, not public service. When this cynicism becomes the national norm, genuine efforts towards accountability are dismissed as superficial or performative.
- Policy Resistance: Any long-term strategic plan—be it fiscal consolidation, administrative reform, or energy transition—is instantly viewed through a lens of suspicion. A government is unable to implement necessary, but initially unpopular, reforms because it lacks the public mandate (trust) required to ask citizens to accept short-term costs for future benefits.
- Corruption Normalisation: With over four-fifths of the population expressing complete non-confidence, the fight against corruption loses its popular resonance. For many citizens, corruption is no longer an anomaly to be eradicated, but an inherent, expected feature of the political system.
Undermining Effectiveness and Compliance
The lack of trust directly impacts the state’s ability to govern efficiently, turning administrative challenges into political obstacles.
- Erosion of Tax Compliance: Good governance requires citizens to respect the rule of law and willingly comply with state regulations, notably tax obligations. When the public perceives that their money is funnelled to an untrustworthy elite, they are far less likely to cooperate. The 3% trust level is inherently linked to high rates of tax evasion and reluctance to comply, starving the state of the resources needed to deliver quality public services.
- Instability and Populism: This systemic failure creates fertile ground for anti-establishment, populist, and radical movements. These factions capitalise on the public’s anger, offering simplistic, short-term solutions that further destabilise the political environment and discourage the complex, long-term policy-making essential for Good Governance.
The Imperative for a Good Governance Overhaul
The 3% trust rating is not a call for better PR; it is a demand for transformation. To survive this crisis of legitimacy, the political class must fundamentally reorient itself toward measurable Good Governance principles:
- Results-Driven Mandate: The focus must shift from political maneuvering to delivering tangible results in public services—modernizing healthcare, improving infrastructure, and streamlining bureaucracy. Visible competence is the only currency that can begin to repurchase public faith.
- Uncompromising Integrity: Political parties must take decisive, public action against corruption within their ranks, demonstrating that they place institutional integrity above party loyalty.
- Structured Dialogue: Governance must become genuinely responsive. This means establishing effective mechanisms for citizen and stakeholder consultation, moving past superficial debates, and ensuring that public feedback fundamentally shapes legislative output.
The extreme lack of faith reflected in this poll signals that the old political operating model is obsolete. For Romania to secure its democratic stability and fulfil its economic potential, the political class must acknowledge the 3% as its final warning and embark on a sincere, radical path toward transparent and accountable Good Governance.
