Roma for Democracy Index

Democracy,
under scrutiny.

The Roma for Democracy Index turns field evidence into a public standard for testing whether rights, participation and public institutions work for Roma across Europe—beginning with representation across 49 national parliaments and the European Parliament.

Evidence to finding

Evidence before
judgement.

The Index is not a ranking. It tests field evidence against one public standard, distinguishing a verified failure, an emerging vulnerability or a baseline that establishes what must be measured next. The finding follows the record—not political convenience.

Evidence begins where democracy operates

FieldConstituencies

ParticipationElections

AuthorityPublic institutions

One public standardEvidence tested

Democratic failure

A democratic standard has been violated.

The record establishes a breach. Accountability is owed.

Democratic baseline

A public measure is established.

The record defines the starting point. Future change can be tested against it.

Democratic vulnerability

A preventable risk is forming.

The conditions are weakening. Institutional action can still change the outcome.

Measurement framework

Three dimensions.
One standard.

The framework follows the democratic cycle from rights in practice, through protected participation, to public outcomes.

Foundation

Rights must operate in practice, not only in law.

Documentation
Registration
Administrative access
Information access

Practice

Democratic participation must be free from coercion, manipulation and distortion.

Electoral safeguards
Fair competition
Political participation
Information environment

Delivery

Governance must produce equitable and measurable outcomes.

Responsiveness
Public services
Transparency
Compliance

The framework becomes credible only when it is tested. Representation is the first test.

First published measure · 2026

11.3 million Roma.
Fifteen national MPs. One current MEP.

The first published indicator sits within Practice: parliamentary representation measured across 49 national chambers and the European Parliament, with each jurisdiction open to scrutiny.

Longitudinal analysisBuild an evidence view.Representation · 2026 is the first published baseline. Further indicators and annual records are in development.

RegionJurisdiction

Published seriesPractice · RepresentationFoundation and Delivery remain in development

Edition2026 baselineFuture annual releases remain in development

Published evidenceRepresentation · 2026

Filter the published baseline by region and jurisdiction, then inspect the record or prepare a protected evidence report.

Difference between voting Roma MPs identified in the reviewed record and the upper population benchmark.

Below upper benchmark

49Parliamentary chambers

11.26MEstimated Roma population

15Voting Roma MPs identified

173Approx. upper representation gap

^* This designation is without prejudice to positions on status and is in line with UN Security Council Resolution 1244 (1999).

Research baseline reviewed · 16 August 2026. Zero means no voting Roma MP was identified in the reviewed record; it is not proof that no Roma person serves.

Evidence noteHow to read this baseline

This first publication establishes a transparent population benchmark for parliamentary representation. It is a comparison standard—not an electoral entitlement or a claim that population alone determines democratic representation.

Edition: Representation · 2026
Evidence review: 16 August 2026
Coverage: 49 national parliaments + European Parliament
Population source: Council of Europe 2012 country estimates; United Kingdom from the European Commission 2012 estimate
Chamber basis: Current voting-seat denominator used by the lower or unicameral chamber record
Chamber exceptions: This reflects current composition where it differs from statutory maximums: Cyprus 56 occupied seats, Malta 79 current seats after constitutional adjustments, and North Macedonia 120 current members while three diaspora seats remain vacant.
Benchmark: Unrounded chamber-seat denominator × Roma population share; European Parliament entitlement is calculated member state by member state under degressive proportionality
Electoral-system scope: Electoral-system fields are verified only for the six Western Balkans jurisdictions in this release.

Representation counts reflect officeholders identified in RFD’s reviewed public record. Official parliamentary datasets generally do not record ethnicity, identity may be self-defined or undisclosed, and zero means no voting Roma MP was identified in the reviewed record—not proof that no Roma person serves.

The prototype exposes the dataset and methodology. A jurisdiction-level public citation ledger remains a production-launch requirement.

The population-share entitlement is an upper benchmark. A voting-age coefficient of 0.78 provides the lower bound; non-citizen Roma populations are not separately quantified.

RFD’s reviewed public record identifies 15 voting Roma MPs across the national systems against an upper population benchmark of 187.7. Hungary also has one non-voting Roma nationality spokesperson, reported separately from the voting total.

The European Parliament is assessed separately: the reviewed record identifies one Roma MEP among its 720 seats, with a mandate that began on 22 May 2026 through an in-term replacement rather than at the 2024 election. Its benchmark is 10.8 seats, calculated member state by member state under degressive proportionality. Across all 50 assessed polities, the combined upper benchmark is approximately 199 seats, leaving an upper representation gap of approximately 183.

Publication discipline

Evidence becomes
public record.

The Index is assembled in stages. Each indicator is released only when its field evidence, comparison standard and method are ready for public scrutiny.

Field-rooted

Evidence begins with organisers in constituencies, observers in polling stations and Roma officeholders inside public institutions.

Comparable

The same indicators and democratic standard are applied across countries, institutions and governments.

Accountable

Every published finding states whether it records a failure, identifies a vulnerability or establishes a baseline.

Roma women and young people carrying Roma and European flags at a public gathering

Evidence enters
public debate.

Continue to News & Resources, where RFD's evidence, analysis and Roma political argument remain open to scrutiny.

News & Resources Act with us