The Democratic Party (, PD) was a social democratic and, later on, liberal conservative political party in Romania. In January 2008, it merged with the Liberal Democratic Party (PLD), a splinter group of the National Liberal Party (PNL), to form the Democratic Liberal Party (PDL). From 1996 to 2005, the party was a member of the Socialist International (SI). From 2004 to 2007, the PD was the junior member of the governing Justice and Truth Alliance (DA), although according to many Romanian opinion polls of the time, it remained the most popular of the two parties. Although it had to formally suspend his leadership to the party when elected president in 2004, the PD was largely associated with former Romanian president Traian Băsescu. History In early 1992, conflict broke out between FSN leaders Ion Iliescu and Petre Roman and this led to the separation of the Iliescu wing under the name of the Democratic National Salvation Front (FDSN), which later became the Party of Social Democracy in Romania (PDSR) and then eventually the Social Democratic Party (PSD). FSN was defeated by the FDSN in the 1992 general election and consequently spent the next four years in opposition. In 1993, the FSN changed its name to the Democratic Party (PD). In the 1996 general election, the PD jointly ran with the now-defunct Romanian Social Democratic Party (PSDR), under the Social Democratic Union (USD) banner. After having ranked third, they joined a governing coalition with the Romanian Democratic Convention (CDR) and the ethnic Hungarian party Democratic Alliance of Hungarians in Romania (UDMR/RMDSZ). From 2000 to 2004, PD has been again in opposition. It also began to move from social democracy to conservatism and Christian democracy. In advance of the 2004 elections, the PD joined forces with the National Liberal Party (PNL) to create the Justice and Truth Alliance (DA), whose main purpose was to fight the all-dominating PSD. The DA managed to win around 32% of the votes in both Chambers, not enough for a majority and about 6% less than the PSD. Together with its liberal allies, the UDMR/RMDSZ, and the Conservative Party (PC), the PD was part of the governing coalition until April 2007. During a congress in 2005, PD members voted in favor of joining the European People's Party (EPP) and abandoning the Party of European Socialists (PES) and the Socialist International (SI). In the same year, Petre Roman