(ANSA-AFP) - BUCHAREST, DEC 7 - Romania's governing pro-European liberals appeared well-placed to stay in power Monday following elections, despite a strong showing by the opposition socialists, according to partial results. The opposition Social Democrats (PSD) have dominated Romanian politics since the collapse of communism but their last spell in government was overshadowed by street protests and clashes with Brussels over judicial reforms - before ending in a vote of no-confidence in 2019. Romania is one of the EU's poorest countries, and four million of its citizens have left in recent years to seek better lives elsewhere, in particular in western EU member states. In a region where populists and nationalists have recently gained ground, Prime Minister Ludovic Orban's governing PNL won some support by pledging to modernise Romania and keep it on a "pro-European" path. With 90 percent of votes counted as of Monday morning, the PSD was ahead with 30 percent, while the governing liberal PNL party had taken 25.5 percent, after a vote marred by record low turnout on Sunday. However, the PSD will lack allies in the new parliament and President Klaus Iohannis -- long a PSD foe -- has said he would not want the party to return to government during his current term, which ends in 2024. (ANSA-AFP).