In the past few days, most of the Romanians I know received two important gifts: PSD didn’t win the elections and Dragnea, its [widely considered] corrupt boss, was sentenced to jail and went there shortly thereafter. Though I’m not a Dragnea/PSD fan, I find the celebrations a bit empty. What bugs me is that only one candidate answered my questions re: #EP2019, and I fear that the vast majority of voters never tried to clarify the programme of the candidates they voted for, nor have they tried to interact with them. Let's try to find reasons.

I’ve already suggested that USR should continue to engage people who didn’t vote for them, even by going to Antena 3, and I’m not alone. Recently, Bill Maher did some coaching for USR[’s homologue in USA]; the recent elections have established USR’s equivalence to the Democrats, whereas PSD are the Republicans, with Antena 3 being Fox News. I’ve actually compared US politics to Romania’s before, pointing out that PSD is more akin to a nationalist party than their self-professed left.

There are certainly those who see it differently. A self-described journalist who vlogs behind the wheel, gaben-style (and, likely and surprisingly, still has a driver’s license), argues in a rather long rant that they shouldn’t. And provides a segue to my next point, on Adrian Severin, who had called the referendum “diabolical” as he films the latter trolling his protesters around EP2019.

Just as Romanians fell from Communist atheism into Medieval obscurantism (i.e., they went from officially rejecting religion to ostentatious bigotry), their representatives interpreted the Adrian Severin MEP corruption scandal as a negative example of what can happen if you interact with your constituents. That, combined with a lack of preparation, deliberately vague and insufficiently discussed programmes, combined with an anxiety/procrastination-driven approach to decision-making is likely what caused them to avoid or refuse to answer. Needless to say, such an extremism is unhelpful and counterproductive and a bad omen for their MEP performance.

It’s unclear to me whether someone like Strugariu (hn-strugariu, adv-strugariu), who made a splash promising full transparency of all her votes, spending, etc. was driven by the guilt of getting elected on a ticket that did not require much effort or vetting or substantial interaction with voters, beyond IG photos. As a former parliamentary secretary, she undoubtedly knows that, as the Galvin Report made it clear, she could follow those self-assumed “transparency directives” and still pocket millions.

It’s all about creating the appearance of openness and ethical behaviour, while maintaining sufficient distance from the voters as to maintain the mirage and prevent the little Ozzard behind the green curtains from becoming apparent.

I had a few conversations with people who worked in advertising, trying to figure out whether I could have done something better. One such conversation took place in the comments to the main article. Another, on Facebook.

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Before going to the the conversation, let me tell you that I’ve tried “boosting” the article with the questions on Facebook for $20. It went on “review” for 2-3 days, then they asked me to sign a bunch of declarations for advertising in Europe, which I didn’t and assumed that the ad wouldn’t run. This all happened about a week before my May 15 deadline. On the 15th, they started boosting my post everywhere but Europe (very useful, right?). In one day, they used up the $20 budget which I then disputed. They called me at 404-9BONOBO and got this voicemail (as automatically transcribed) on May 20:

Hi, my name is Zach. I'm calling on behalf of Facebook app supports. Just wanted to reach out in regards to an email we received. I just wanted to touch base with you and get a bit more information, but considering I can get you on the line. I'm going to email you back. We have it as a first name. Last name at gmail.com signals that the ticket is under, so I'll reach out to you there. Feel free to get back to us there with any further questions or concerns. We'll touch base with you and get the ball rolling on this one. In the meantime. I hope you have yourself an excellent day. Take care.

It feels unfair to be charged for boosting a post too late and without including the main territory it was meant for.

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I suppose I still want to vote knowingly, and maybe for the next elections a few of us can get together and do what votecompass did. I’m still very disappointed with how Romanian politicians understand to interact with their voters and how little the voters manage to go beyond their own tribes, especially considering that some see the recent elections as a sign that the current political order is being upended.

Moreover, the voters are so accustomed to being penalized by their representatives, that they find it impossible to believe/understand that they (the voters) do have a choice and need to exercise it diligently, which means restricting it to those who bother answering queries.

LE: I did not expect my opinion to be so soon validated  (by Tudorr.Pop “gaffe/Freudian slip”).

Sources / More info: hn-strugariu, adv-strugariu, agc-timelinemepc, wEN-AS, wRO-AS, ec-bckdwn, wiki-2011mepscand, bt-5lrgstscndls, pr-voivotu, wl-galvin