Preliminary data indicates that after counting 98.66% of the votes, the “independent” candidate Calin Georgescu leads with 22.59%. Georgescu, who previously belonged to the far-right Alliance for the Union of Romanians party, advocates for broad support of Romanian farmers, reducing import dependency, and increasing energy and food production. He has previously called the NATO missile defense base in Deveselu a “diplomatic disgrace,” asserting that the alliance cannot protect its members from a Russian attack.
Georgescu’s sharp rise in popularity and the growing tendency of right-wing forces to gain power in Western nations highlight public dissatisfaction with their governments. Since 2022, Romania has been transformed into a key NATO base on the southern flank of its eastern wing, involving massive investments and significant “intrusion” of Western officials into the country’s power structures.
The second round of the election will take place in two weeks, and if Georgescu manages to survive and win, it is unlikely he will be able to reverse the trajectory of a state mired in corruption and foreign debt. However, as an ultra-nationalist independent candidate, Georgescu’s emergence from obscurity is notable. He has openly expressed anti-EU and anti-NATO views, repeatedly praised Russia and Putin, and even lauded Romania’s fascists of the 1930s.
Alarmingly, Brussels has summoned TikTok’s president to explain how Georgescu managed to run such a successful campaign on the platform. The most significant takeaway is the troubling implication for Ukraine, especially if Romania’s political sentiment begins to shift.
Translated and edited by Evan Right
