Assessment at the end of the parliamentary year: the quietest and most talkative parliamentarians. Dozens of senators and deputies spoke at the swearing-in alone

Of the 463 parliamentarians, 52 did not have any speech in the plenary. No taking the floor, apart from the mandatory moment at the beginning of the mandate. Instead, there are senators and deputies who have spoken more than 100 times, as well as even more than 300 times. Who are these?

In this parliamentary year, 97 plenary sessions were held in the Chamber of Deputies, and 94 in the Senate.

There is no parliamentarian who has never spoken in plenary, because all of them have to speak when they take their oath of office at the beginning of their mandate. In this case, on December 21, 2024.

The reading of the oath by a senators and deputies does not last more than one minute.

“I swear allegiance to my homeland Romania;

I swear to respect the Constitution and the laws of the country;

I swear to defend democracy, the fundamental rights and freedoms of citizens, the sovereignty, independence, unity and territorial integrity of Romania;

I swear to honorably and faithfully fulfill the mandate entrusted to me by the people;

So may God help me”.

For 52 of the senators and deputies, it was the only time they spoke, according to the data consulted by HotNews on the websites of the Chamber of Deputies and the Senate, regarding the activity of the parliamentarians both for the February-June session and for the September-December session.

Where are the 52 parliamentarians from?

• 22 of them are elected on PSD lists – 16 deputies and 6 senators. Among them are Paul Stănescu, an important leader of PSD, and Marius Alexandru Dunca, vice-president of the party

• 15 PNL parliamentarians – 10 deputies and 5 senators. Among them are Monica Anisie, former Minister of Education in the governments led by Ludovic Orban, as well as Vasile Blaga, one of the influential leaders of the party and Gheorghe Flutur, the senator from Suceava who lost the headship of the Suceava County Council in 2024 to the social democrat Gheorghe Șoldan.
• 5 parliamentarians are from AUR: 3 deputies and 2 senators
• 3 parliamentarians are from USR: 2 deputies and a senator
• 2 UDMR parliamentarians
• A representative of National Minorities
• A senator from the PACE – First Romania group.
• 3 unaffiliated parliamentarians – 2 deputies, including Gigi Becali, and senator Paul Ciprian Pintea, the senator who falsified his CV

Some spoke twice, others 300 times

In addition to the 52 parliamentarians who spoke only when taking the oath, 36 parliamentarians spoke only 2 times, while 31 of them went to the plenary gallery 3 times.

The basic monthly salary of a simple parliamentarian, whether he is a deputy or a senator, is 18,720 lei gross, which means approximately 11,000 lei net.

Who are the most talkative parliamentarians?

At the opposite pole, members of the leadership of the Chamber of Deputies and those of the Senate are among the most active parliamentarians.

For example, Natalia Intotero (PSD), who is the vice-president of the Chamber of Deputies and often leads the plenary sessions in the absence of the president Sorin Grindeanu, spoke 610 times in 31 meetings. In addition to her, the Chamber has three other vice-presidents:

• Gianina Șerban (AUR), who spoke 263 times in 40 meetings
• Adrian Cozma (PNL), 249 times in 26 meetings
• Cătălin Drula (USR) spoke 239 times in 22 meetings. The information on the website of the Chamber of Deputies shows, instead, that Drula initiated only one bill.

Disregarding those who lead plenary sessions, there are senators and deputies who have spoken more than 100 times:

• The senator elected on the lists of the Party of Young People (POT), Gheorghe Vela, took the floor 353 times in 94 sessions
• The leader of USR senators, Ștefan Pălărie accumulated 140 interventions
• Dumitru Coarnă, unaffiliated deputy, spoke from the lectern in the Chamber of Deputies 125 times in 55 sessions

• Petrișor Peiu, AUR senator, spoke of 99 times in 94 sessions
• Senator Daniel Fenechiu, elected on the PNL lists, for example, went to the Senate gallery on 98 times in the 94 sessions
• Verginia Vedinaș, deputy SOS Romania supported 87 of interventions in 55 sessions
• Gabriel Andronache, PNL deputy, took the floor 84 times in 54 sessions
• The head of AUR, George Simion, ascended to the lectern of the deputies of 78 times in 44 sessions
• Alexandru Dimitriu, one of the most vocal members of the USR group of deputies, spoke in plenary 76 times in 49 sessions