The leader of the Romanian far-right, Gheorghe Simion, won the first round of the presidential election by a wide margin.
Points of attention
- Far-right candidate Gheorghe Simion secures victory in the first round of the Romanian presidential election, leading with a wide margin.
- Simion's potential win raises concerns about destabilizing NATO's eastern flank and posing challenges for Ukraine amid the Russian invasion.
- The victory of a far-right candidate could impact the European Union by increasing Eurosceptic sentiments and influencing European politics.
Far-right candidate Simion wins first round of Romanian presidential election
With ballots counted from nearly 99.6% of polling stations, Bucharest Mayor Nicosor Dan, 55, came in second with 21% of the vote, behind Simion, who received 40.6%. They will face off in a second round on May 18.
It is noted that voting abroad showed an even greater advantage for Simion, who received 60% of the vote, and Dan — 26%.
Reuters adds that Simeon's victory "could isolate Romania, reduce private investment and destabilize NATO's eastern flank, where Ukraine has been resisting Russian invasion for three years."
His victory would also add to the ranks of Eurosceptic leaders in the EU — which already includes the prime ministers of Hungary and Slovakia — as Europe formulates its response to Trump.
Eurosceptic and nationalist Simion promised to bring back pro-Russian figure Georgescu, who was barred from running again due to illegal campaign financing and ties to a fascist organization, into Romanian politics. So Simion took over the leadership.
There are several ways in which — if the Romanian people want it — Mr. Georgescu can be in power. And we will use them. We can form a majority and appoint him prime minister, we can hold early elections or initiate a referendum.
