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CEE: Far-Right Candidate Takes Lead In First Round Of Romanian Presidential Race

CEE
EM BulletHomepagemarkets-real-timePolitical RiskPolitical Risk BulletBulletEmerging Market News

Far-right candidate Calin Georgescu unexpectedly emerged as the front-runner after the first round of Romania's presidential election, securing around 23% of the vote, as per partial results available at typing. Georgescu runs as an independent, but is known for his nationalist, pro-Russian and anti-NATO remarks. With more than 99.9% of the votes counted, Prime Minister Marcel Ciolacu of the Social Democratic Party (PSD) and liberal Save Romania Union's (USR's) Elena Lasconi are locked in a tight race for the second place, with the latter edging ahead by a razor-thin margin. Two leading candidates will advance to the run-off to be held on December 8.

  • Georgescu was a member of the far-right, nationalist Alliance for the Union of Romanians (AUR) but was expelled from the party in 2022 for praising local wartime fascist leaders, which led to the opening of a criminal case against him. He has also drawn attention for his pro-Russian comments and downplaying the threat posed by COVID-19.
  • AUR's George Simion is set to take the fourth place, securing around 14% of the vote. This brings the total share of votes cast for nationalist candidates to more than a third, albeit the preference of far-right voters for Georgescu came as a surprise, with Simion able to utilise the structures of his political party to support his presidential bid.
  • Georgescu's result significantly exceeded earlier estimates based on both pre-election opinion polls and subsequent exit polls. Running as an independent candidate, Georgescu largely focused his campaign activities on TikTok and managed to emerge from relative obscurity and gain wider recognition over the span of just a few months.
  • While Romanian presidency is largely ceremonial, the timing of this presidential race is crucial, with a parliamentary election set to be held in the interim between the two rounds (on December 1). The outcome of the presidential race is a major setback for the ruling PSD/USR coalition.
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Far-right candidate Calin Georgescu unexpectedly emerged as the front-runner after the first round of Romania's presidential election, securing around 23% of the vote, as per partial results available at typing. Georgescu runs as an independent, but is known for his nationalist, pro-Russian and anti-NATO remarks. With more than 99.9% of the votes counted, Prime Minister Marcel Ciolacu of the Social Democratic Party (PSD) and liberal Save Romania Union's (USR's) Elena Lasconi are locked in a tight race for the second place, with the latter edging ahead by a razor-thin margin. Two leading candidates will advance to the run-off to be held on December 8.

  • Georgescu was a member of the far-right, nationalist Alliance for the Union of Romanians (AUR) but was expelled from the party in 2022 for praising local wartime fascist leaders, which led to the opening of a criminal case against him. He has also drawn attention for his pro-Russian comments and downplaying the threat posed by COVID-19.
  • AUR's George Simion is set to take the fourth place, securing around 14% of the vote. This brings the total share of votes cast for nationalist candidates to more than a third, albeit the preference of far-right voters for Georgescu came as a surprise, with Simion able to utilise the structures of his political party to support his presidential bid.
  • Georgescu's result significantly exceeded earlier estimates based on both pre-election opinion polls and subsequent exit polls. Running as an independent candidate, Georgescu largely focused his campaign activities on TikTok and managed to emerge from relative obscurity and gain wider recognition over the span of just a few months.
  • While Romanian presidency is largely ceremonial, the timing of this presidential race is crucial, with a parliamentary election set to be held in the interim between the two rounds (on December 1). The outcome of the presidential race is a major setback for the ruling PSD/USR coalition.