Social Democrats

Romania's Supreme Court on Thursday jailed former Finance Minister Darius Valcov for eight years for influence peddling, money laundering and transactions that were incompatible with his position in the administration.

Prime Minister Viorica Dancila announced that the activity of each minister in her Cabinet will be assessed on a monthly basis, together with the leaders of the Social Democrat Party (PSD) - the Alliance of Liberals and Democrats (ALDE) coalition, Liviu Dragnea and Calin Popescu Tariceanu.

Romania's new Social Democrat government, led by the country's first woman Prime Minister, Viorica Dancila, was sworn in on Monday.

However, there was criticism from the opposition about the alleged lack of expertise among some ministers and about a governance plan that has raised fears of further economic uncertainty.

Romania plunged into a major political crisis for the second time in seven months after the party leadership of the ruling Social Democrat Party voted Monday to withdraw their political support for Prime Minister Mihai Tudose.

Tudose said he will submit his resignation by no later than Tuesday morning and will not stay in office as interim prime minister.

Romania plunged into a major political crisis for the second time in seven months after the party leadership of the ruling Social Democrat Party voted Monday to withdraw their political support for Prime Minister Mihai Tudose.

Tudose said he will submit his resignation by no later than Tuesday morning and will not stay in office as interim prime minister.

 Austria's conservatives and right-wing populists on Friday agreed to form a coalition government nearly seven weeks after the October 15 election, Deutsche Welle reports. 

People's Party (ÖVP) leader Sebastian Kurz will become the next chancellor and Freedom Party (FPÖ) head Heinz-Christian Strache will become vice-chancellor.

In an interview for Kurir news website, published on Friday, Nikola Gruevski said he plans to tender his resignation as leader of VMRO DPMNE soon, regardless of the outcome of ongoing party analysis about its defeat in the October local elections and earlier general election.

Romania's ruling Social Democrat Party chief Liviu Dragnea was called in for questioning on Monday by anti-graft prosecutors at the National Anti-Corruption Directorate, DNA.

Prosecutors say Dragnea is a suspect in an investigation into fraud involving European Union funds when he was acting head of Teleorman County Council.  

The second round of voting on Sunday won't change the big picture from the first round, at which the main ruling Social Democrats, SDSM, won a big victory over their bitter opponents from the opposition right-wing VMRO DPMNE party - but the contest in the ethnic Albanian bloc is expected to be a lot more exciting.

FYROM's (Macedonia) ruling Social Democrats (SDSM) have won a sweeping victory in the first round of local elections and delivered a severe blow to the conservative VMRO-DPMNE party that ruled much of the country for more than a decade.