S.O.S. Romania () is a

far-right Far-right politics, also referred to as the extreme right or right-wing extremism, are political beliefs and actions further to the right of the left–right political spectrum than the standard political right, particularly in terms of bein ...

political party in Romania that was founded in 2021. The party is considered to be

right-wing populist Right-wing populism, also called national populism and right-wing nationalism, is a political ideology that combines right-wing politics and populism, populist rhetoric and themes. Its rhetoric employs anti-Elitism, elitist sentiments, opposi ...

socially conservative Social conservatism is a political philosophy and variety of conservatism which places emphasis on traditional power structures over social pluralism. Social conservatives organize in favor of duty, traditional values and social instituti ...

, and

irredentist Irredentism is usually understood as a desire that one state annexes a territory of a neighboring state. This desire is motivated by ethnic reasons (because the population of the territory is ethnically similar to the population of the parent sta ...

. Additionally, the party is known for its

Eurosceptic Euroscepticism, also spelled as Euroskepticism or EU-scepticism, is a political position involving criticism of the European Union (EU) and European integration. It ranges from those who oppose some EU institutions and policies, and seek refor ...

stance, and is considered more radical than the right-wing

Alliance for the Union of Romanians The Alliance for the Union of Romanians ( ro, Alianța pentru Unirea Românilor, AUR) is a right-wing populist and nationalist political party currently active in Romania and Moldova. It was founded on 19 September 2019. This was done with the ...

(AUR). S.O.S Romania has been described as being closely tied to Russia. Since 2022, the party has been led by

Diana Șoșoacă Diana Iovanovici Șoșoacă (born 13 November 1975) is a Romanian lawyer, activist, and Far-right politics, far-right politician. Șoșoacă rose to prominence as an Anti-vaccine activism, anti-vaccine activist during the COVID-19 pandemic. She ...

, then a member of the

Senate of Romania ) is the upper house in the bicameral Parliament of Romania. It has 136 seats (before the 2016 Romanian legislative election the total number of elected representatives was 176), to which members are elected by direct popular vote using party-li ...

, who had been elected on the AUR list.

History

The party was founded in November 2021 by Maricel Viziteu and Adeluța and Gabriel Gib, the latter being a former member of the Romanian Socialist Party (PSR). It became known on the Romanian political landscape in May 2022 after senator

, elected on the

(AUR) list, joined the party and later became its leader. Political analyst and former politician

Miron Mitrea Miron Tudor Mitrea (born August 8, 1956) is a Romanian engineer and politician. A member of the Social Democratic Party (PSD), he was a member of the Romanian Chamber of Deputies for Vrancea County from 1996 to 2008, and sat in the Romanian Senate ...

stated that the party had a support level of 5–6% in the election polls as of July 2023. Șoșoacă replied that its support level was much higher and told people not to trust the polls. On 13 October 2023, S.O.S. Romania expressed its intention to join the

Identity and Democracy Party The Identity and Democracy Party (french: link=no, Parti Identité et Démocratie; it, Partito Identità e Democrazia; german: link=no, Identität und Demokratie Partei), abbreviated to ID Party and formerly known as the Movement for a Europe ...

in the European Parliament. However, it was later reported the S.O.S. Romania would join an alliance led by

Alternative for Germany Alternative for Germany (german: link=no, Alternative für Deutschland, AfD; ) is a right-wing populist * * * * * * * political party in Germany. AfD is known for its opposition to the European Union, as well as immigration to Germany ...

instead. On 28 June 2024, the Alternative for Germany declined the application of S.O.S. Romania to join their European Parliament group, with the Hungarian nationalist party

Our Homeland Movement Our Homeland Movement ( Hungarian: ''Mi Hazánk Mozgalom,'' MHM) is a Hungarian far-right political party founded by Ásotthalom mayor and former Jobbik Vice-President László Toroczkai and other Jobbik dissidents that left the organization aft ...

stating that this was at their request.

Political views

Views on the EU and Russia

Șoșoacă demanded

Romanian withdrawal from the European Union It has been proposed that Romania withdraw from the European Union (EU), this sometimes being known as Roexit or Romexit (with both being portmanteaus of "Romania" and "exit"). History In 2018, Daniel Dragomir, suggested in Facebook that Ro ...

. and is also critical of

NATO The North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO, ; french: Organisation du traité de l'Atlantique nord, ), also called the North Atlantic Alliance, is an intergovernmental military alliance between 30 member states – 28 European and two No ...

. On the party's website, it claims that it opposes "Russian and Chinese dictatorships", and that it supports Romania's EU membership, preferring to be called

Eurorealist Euroscepticism, also spelled as Euroskepticism or EU-scepticism, is a political position involving criticism of the European Union (EU) and European integration. It ranges from those who oppose some EU institutions and policies, and seek reform ...

rather than Eurosceptic. Sosoaca has openly supported the Russian Federation, and visited the Russian embassy multiple times. She visited the embassy of Russia in Bucharest on the

12 June Events Pre-1600 * 910 – Battle of Augsburg: The Hungarians defeat the East Frankish army under King Louis the Child, using the famous feigned retreat tactic of the nomadic warriors. *1240 – At the instigation of Louis IX of Fran ...

. The party's president,

, was accused of promoting

antisemitic Antisemitism (also spelled anti-semitism or anti-Semitism) is hostility to, prejudice towards, or discrimination against Jews. A person who holds such positions is called an antisemite. Antisemitism is considered to be a form of racism. Ant ...

conspiracy theories, after being rejected from the 2024 presidential run. She paid tribute to the former

Legionary The Roman legionary (in Latin ''legionarius'', plural ''legionarii'') was a professional heavy infantryman of the Roman army after the Marian reforms. These soldiers would conquer and defend the territories of ancient Rome during the late Republ ...

leader

Corneliu Zelea Codreanu Corneliu Zelea Codreanu (; born Corneliu Codreanu, according to his birth certificate; 13 September 1899 – 30 November 1938) was a Romanian politician of the far right, the founder and charismatic leader of the Iron Guard or ''The Legion o ...

and used

tropes..

Support for Greater Romania

The party is also a proponent of

Greater Romania The term Greater Romania ( ro, România Mare) usually refers to the borders of the Kingdom of Romania in the interwar period, achieved after the Great Union. It also refers to a pan-nationalist idea. As a concept, its main goal is the creatio ...

, demanding Ukraine to return to Romania the territories annexed in 1940 during the

Soviet occupation of Bessarabia and Northern Bukovina The Soviet occupation of Bessarabia and Northern Bukovina took place from June 28 to July 3, 1940, as a result of an ultimatum by the Soviet Union to Romania on June 26, 1940, that threatened the use of force. Bessarabia had been part of the Kin ...

, which are today part of Ukraine. Due to this, Ukraine imposed sanctions on Șoșoacă, who is the party's president.

Electoral history

Legislative elections

European elections

References

{{Unification of Moldova and Romania 2021 establishments in Romania Political parties established in 2021 Conservative parties in Romania Eastern Orthodox political parties Nationalist parties in Romania Romanian nationalist parties Right-wing parties in Romania Right-wing populist parties Romanian irredentism Anti-immigration politics in Europe Far-right political parties in Romania Anti-communist parties National conservative parties Social conservative parties Eurosceptic parties in Romania Organizations that oppose LGBTQ rights in Romania Christian fundamentalist organizations in Europe Christian nationalism in Europe Anti-abortion organizations Anti-LGBTQ Christian organizations Natalism Eastern Orthodoxy and far-right politics Paleoconservative organizations Paleoconservatism Russophilic parties