Representation without power: the access of ethnic Romanian minorities to local executive positions in Covasna, Harghita and Mureș

This study represents the first part of a broader research project regarding the relationship between demographic weight, electoral representation, and the access of numerically minoritised communities to local executive positions. This project will eventually be extended to the seven Romanian counties with the largest Hungarian populations. The current analysis focuses on the counties of Covasna, Harghita, and Mureș, covering the electoral cycles from 1992–2024. Data were collected primarily through requests based on Law no. 544/2001, addressed to county councils, town halls, and prefectures. The centralisation of these data includes the leadership of county councils, mayors, deputy mayors, and the composition of local councils in municipalities and towns where the numerical minority accounts for approximately 10% or more of the population. The findings indicate an “asymmetry” in the conversion of deliberative representation into executive access. In Miercurea-Ciuc and Sfântu Gheorghe, Romanian representation within local councils has not translated into comparable access to the position of deputy mayor. Throughout the analysed period, all deputy mayor positions in Miercurea-Ciuc and Sfântu Gheorghe have been held by the UDMR. In Târgu-Mureș, every mandate following the 1992–1996 period has included at least one UDMR deputy mayor, even after the demographic balance shifted in favour of the Romanian population; between 2000 and 2008, the deputy mayors were drawn exclusively from UDMR.