IRES poll finds 51 pct of Romanians expect 2023 to be worse than this year

Half of Romanians (51 percent) expect 2023 to be worse than this year and only a quarter (24 percent) believe it will be better, while an equal percentage of respondents say things will be the same, reveals an IRES poll.

The sociological poll found that the more optimistic respondents are those with a low level of education, as well as those who state that they would vote Social Democrat or Liberal if parliamentary elections were held next Sunday, Agerpres informs.

The most pessimistic respondents are found among active people aged between 36 and 65, and among those who are undecided about voting in the parliamentary election.

Almost half (48 percent) of the respondents expect the coming year to be worse than 2022 in terms of living standards, 26 percent think it will be the same and 24 percent believe it will be better, while 2 percent did not know or they didn't want to answer.

Young people and voters of the National Liberal Party are more optimistic about their financial status in 2023, while low-income respondents who collect less than 2,000 RON per month, people aged between 51 and 65, and those who would vote with the Alliance for the Union of Romanians or are undecided are more pessimistic.

The national opinion poll was conducted by IRES between December 7 and 12 using the computer-assisted phone interview method on a sample of 1,615 respondents aged over 18, and has a margin of error of ą 2.5 percent.