The Romanian court cancels the presidential elections in an unprecedented political earthquake

The first round of the election saw previously unknown far-right nationalist candidate Calin Georgescu lead the polls in a shock result.

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Romania's presidential runoff between far-right candidate Calin Georgescu and pro-EU centrist Elena Lasconi has now been halted, after the Constitutional Court annulled the results of the first round of votes and announced an entirely new election instead.

This dramatic and unprecedented decision comes as voting begins in the diaspora.

“The entire electoral process for electing the President of Romania will be resumed, as the government must set a new date for the election of the President of Romania as well as a new calendar program for implementing the necessary measures,” the court said in a statement on Friday.

The court said that the decision to cancel the first round was due to procedural issues and the declassification of secret reports prepared by Romanian intelligence services that showed Russia’s involvement in influencing voters through an anti-Western propaganda campaign supporting Georgescu.

Intelligence reports showed several illegal operations in financing Georgescu's campaign.

The court had previously considered a request to cancel the election results after Georgescu surprised the political establishment by taking first place, but decided to move forward.

Friday's decision leaves the country in an unparalleled political situation with unexpected consequences. According to preliminary scenarios, new elections may be held in the spring of 2025 if the decision on the new vote also means restarting the entire process, including collecting signatures for each candidate, from scratch.

From “the only correct solution” to “the coup is in full swing”

The centre-left Social Democratic Party's first-round candidate and current Prime Minister Marcel Ciulacu praised the Bucharest court's decision as the right thing to do.

“CCR’s decision to cancel the presidential election is the only correct solution after the declassification of CSAT meeting documents, which show that the result of the Romanian vote was grossly distorted after Russian interference,” Ciulacu said.

He added, “The authorities' investigations must show who is responsible for trying to significantly influence the results of the presidential elections.”

“Romanians need clear answers from the authorities based on hard evidence because public confidence in state institutions and the democratic processes that underpin the functioning of the country fundamentally depends on this investigation,” Ciolacu concluded.

Other Romanian politicians, including Lasconi, largely criticized the court's decision, with the liberal candidate calling it “illegal, immoral and crushing the essence of democracy.”

“Today is the moment when the Romanian state trampled on democracy. God, the Romanian people, truth and law will prevail and will find them guilty of destroying our democracy,” she said.

“We have all already seen how Putin laughed at the way the political power in Bucharest managed these elections,” the Soviet Union leader added.

Leader of the far-right nationalist party AUR, Georges Simon, described the court's decision as a “coup afoot” but rejected the idea of ​​protests at this time.

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Simon wrote on Facebook: “We do not go out to the streets, and we do not allow ourselves to be provoked. This regime must fall democratically.”

Georgescu, the winner of the first round of the presidential elections, did not hold a press conference despite journalists gathering in front of his house on Friday night.

In a chilling recorded speech broadcast on Realitatea news channel instead, he mocked the court ruling as “a barbaric act by an oligarchic state against democracy.”

He added, “The corrupt regime in Romania has made a pact with the devil. Party leaders are trembling with fear.” “The wave is moving and cannot be stopped. Look everywhere, in the whole world. Look at what is happening in France.”

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He added, “I do not think we will lose the elections. The Romanian people will continue to vote. Instead of (US President-elect Donald) Trump, they put Georgescu. The same accusations were made against Trump.”

He concluded by saying: “I will continue. Nothing can stop us. God can never be defeated.”

Voting was affected by disagreements

Georgescu has been subject to controversy since he surprisingly topped the ballot nearly two weeks ago.

The first round of voting has already faced court scrutiny, with two losing candidates filing complaints about a lack of transparency in campaign financing and voter deception.

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On Wednesday, surprising declassified information from Romanian intelligence agencies revealed that Georgescu's victory “was not a natural result” and that a coordinated social media campaign by a “government actor” artificially supported his victory.

Georgescu ran a successful campaign on the social media platform TikTok. His popularity exploded in the weeks leading up to the vote, with the candidate receiving tens of millions of views days before the first round.

The documents showed that a previously organized dormant network suddenly became active on the app two weeks before the election.

Romanian intelligence concluded that the network used methods typical of government agencies to recruit and coordinate with others through the Telegram messaging platform.

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The documents also found that nearly €1 million was spent during the campaign by someone who supported Georgescu's candidacy, with up to €950 paid for reposts on the app.

Georgescu claimed that he had no budget for the campaign and had gotten help through volunteers.

On Thursday, the European Commission sent TikTok an “urgent” request to obtain information about the platform’s role in the elections.

“We are concerned about growing indications of a coordinated online foreign influence operation targeting the ongoing Romanian elections, especially on TikTok,” said Hina Virkkonen, the Commission’s Executive Vice President in charge of digital policy.

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TikTok did not respond to Euronews' requests for comment.

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