Why Romania Still Makes Sense

After we arrived in Romania, I wrote about why Romania made sense for us. I examined political stability, personal safety, economics, and international relationships, trying to understand not only what life looked like in each country, but where things appeared to be heading. I wasn't looking for a perfect country. I was trying to make an informed decision about where we wanted to build our future.

A year and a half later, world affairs have continued developing at a rapid pace. The United States has experienced escalating political tensions, violence surrounding immigration enforcement, war with Iran, sweeping tariffs, and strained relationships with longstanding allies. Romania has faced its own political controversies, significant tax increases, and growing economic hardship. So I thought it was worth revisiting my original assessment.

Political Stability and Personal Safety

One of my greatest concerns about the United States was its democratic trajectory. Freedom House now rates the United States at 81 out of 100, compared with Romania's 83. Both remain classified as free democracies, but America's continued decline is troubling, particularly when considered alongside the political violence and institutional conflicts of the past year.

I know many Americans are celebrating November's Democratic blue wave, and I too, understand the relief. Accountability matters. But I worry about the assumption that changing which party controls Congress means the underlying danger has passed. In fact, political science gives us some compelling evidence to the contrary.

Political scientist and UC San Diego professor Barbara F. Walter's research demonstrates that countries occupying the unstable middle ground between democracy and autocracy face the greatest risk of civil war, particularly when democratic deterioration is accompanied by intense political factionalism. But there's another important consideration: elections and challenges to entrenched political power can be especially volatile periods, particularly when leaders or their supporters perceive the results as an existential threat. Elections don't necessarily resolve political conflict. Under certain conditions, they can become flashpoints for violence.

That doesn't mean America is destined for civil war, or that violence is inevitable following the midterms. But it does mean that celebrating an election as the end of a democratic crisis may be premature. The underlying divisions, institutional distrust, and political hostility haven't disappeared. Neither has the extraordinary concentration of privately owned firearms, estimated at approximately 120 for every 100 American residents. If anything, the question now is whether America's political institutions and its citizens can navigate a shift in power without further escalation.

Americans frequently ask whether Romania is safe, which I find increasingly ironic. Over the past year, the United States has experienced deadly confrontations involving immigration enforcement, injuries during demonstrations, and disturbing reports about detention conditions. Human Rights Watch and Physicians for Human Rights documented 52 deaths associated with ICE custody between January 2025 and June 2026. Investigations into migrants transferred to El Salvador's CECOT prison have also documented allegations of torture, arbitrary detention, and serious violations of due process.

Romania certainly has problems with corruption, political controversy, and institutional accountability. The annulment of its 2024 presidential election raised legitimate concerns, and subsequent demonstrations included clashes with police. But how often do we hear about protesters being killed here, widespread political shootings, or people dying in immigration detention? These questions deserve careful statistical comparison rather than assumptions based on news coverage, but they also challenge the idea that Americans are inherently safer simply because they're living somewhere familiar.

International Relations and Economic Resilience

The war involving the United States, Israel, and Iran has introduced another layer of global instability, disrupting energy markets and threatening commercial shipping through the Strait of Hormuz. American tariffs have also increased costs and uncertainty in international trade, while tensions with longstanding allies have complicated relationships that once seemed relatively dependable. These developments affect far more than Americans. They influence energy prices, financial markets, and household expenses throughout the world.

Romania's membership in NATO and the European Union remains an important consideration for me, particularly given its proximity to Ukraine. Those relationships provide institutional and security cooperation, but they don't make Romania immune to the consequences of war or economic disruption. In fact, Romania has experienced substantial financial pressures of its own, with weak economic growth, persistent inflation, and government efforts to reduce its budget deficit.

The Romanian government has increased the standard VAT rate from 19% to 21%, raised excise duties, and introduced other tax changes. Groceries have become noticeably more expensive, utilities are a growing burden, and fuel here has approached the equivalent of $10 per gallon. I sometimes watch Americans complain about gasoline costing four or five dollars and wonder whether they realize how much of the rest of the world is struggling with the same pressures, often while earning considerably less. For Romanian families, particularly pensioners and people living on modest wages, these increases are genuinely difficult.

But something I've come to appreciate about Romania is that financial resilience isn't entirely dependent on purchasing power. In the rural communities around us, people still grow food, raise animals, preserve harvests, heat with wood, repair what they own, and exchange resources with family and neighbors. These aren't trendy homesteading projects or expensive attempts to become self-sufficient. They're ordinary practices that have remained part of life across generations.

That doesn't make inflation painless, and it certainly doesn't mean everyone has access to land or family support. But it does provide some households with ways to adjust when money becomes scarce. A stocked cellar, a productive garden, and neighbors who share labor or food offer a kind of security that doesn't appear in income statistics. I think we've become so accustomed to measuring prosperity through consumption that we sometimes overlook the value of knowing how to live with less.

Looking Back

The past year hasn't made Romania an easier place to live economically, and I don't think anyone should mistake European integration for immunity from international instability. There are serious challenges here, and some have become more difficult since we arrived. That said, it's still wildly more affordable than life in the U.S. overall.

The developments in the United States have reinforced why I was concerned about democratic deterioration, political violence, and international relationships in the first place. The recent election may create opportunities for meaningful change (and I truly hope for that change!), but rebuilding institutional trust and social cohesion is a much larger undertaking than winning congressional seats.

When we chose Romania, I wasn't simply comparing which country offered the most comfort in the moment. I was considering the direction each society was heading, the risks we were willing to accept, and the resources available to navigate an uncertain global future.

Those considerations haven't disappeared. If anything, the past year has made them more relevant. Life here has been far from perfect, but Carter and I are happy to be staying.

Sources and further reading:

Associated Press. “Calling Control of Congress in the 2026 Midterm Elections.” November 5, 2026. https://www.ap.org/the-definitive-source/behind-the-news/calling-control-of-congress-in-the-2026-midterm-elections/.

European Commission. “Economic Forecast for Romania.” May 21, 2026. https://economy-finance.ec.europa.eu/economic-surveillance-eu-member-states/country-pages-including-country-reports/romania/economic-forecast-romania_en.

Freedom House. “Romania: Freedom in the World 2026 Country Report.” Freedom in the World 2026. https://freedomhouse.org/country/romania/freedom-world/2026.

Freedom House. “United States: Freedom in the World 2026 Country Report.” Freedom in the World 2026. https://freedomhouse.org/country/united-states/freedom-world/2026.

Hafner-Burton, Emilie M., Susan D. Hyde, and Ryan S. Jablonski. “Surviving Elections: Election Violence, Incumbent Victory, and Post-Election Repercussions.” British Journal of Political Science (2016). https://doi.org/10.1017/S000712341600020X.

Human Rights Watch and Cristosal. “You Have Arrived in Hell”: Torture and Other Abuses Against Venezuelans in El Salvador’s Mega Prison. November 12, 2025. https://www.hrw.org/report/2025/11/12/you-have-arrived-in-hell/torture-and-other-abuses-against-venezuelans-in-el.

Human Rights Watch and Physicians for Human Rights. Dying in Detention: Rising Deaths in an Expanding US Immigration Detention System. June 25, 2026. https://www.hrw.org/report/2026/06/25/dying-in-detention/rising-deaths-in-an-expanding-us-immigration-detention-system.

International Monetary Fund. Romania: 2025 Article IV Consultation—Press Release; Staff Report; and Statement by the Executive Director for Romania. IMF Country Report No. 25/294. Washington, DC: International Monetary Fund, October 2025. https://www.imf.org/-/media/files/publications/cr/2025/english/1rouea2025001-source-pdf.pdf.

Karp, Aaron. Estimating Global Civilian-Held Firearms Numbers. Briefing Paper. Geneva: Small Arms Survey, June 2018. https://www.smallarmssurvey.org/sites/default/files/resources/SAS-BP-Civilian-Firearms-Numbers.pdf.

North Atlantic Treaty Organization. “Strengthening NATO’s Eastern Flank.” Updated September 29, 2026. https://www.nato.int/en/what-we-do/deterrence-and-defence/strengthening-natos-eastern-flank.

Reuters. “Iran Says Tanker Carrying LNG Hit Mine, Suffered Explosion in Hormuz.” November 13, 2026. https://www.reuters.com/world/iran-says-tanker-carrying-lng-hit-mine-suffered-explosion-hormuz-2026-11-13/.

Reuters. “Romanian Protesters Demand Cancelled Presidential Election Should Go Ahead.” January 12, 2025. https://www.reuters.com/world/europe/romanian-protesters-demand-cancelled-presidential-election-should-go-ahead-2025-01-12/.

The Budget Lab at Yale. “Tracking the Economic Effects of Tariffs.” April 1, 2026. https://budgetlab.yale.edu/research/tracking-economic-effects-tariffs.

University of California, San Diego. “Barbara F. Walter.” School of Global Policy and Strategy. https://gps.ucsd.edu/faculty-directory/barbara-walter.html.

Walter, Barbara F. How Civil Wars Start: And How to Stop Them. New York: Crown, 2022.