Romania Bars Pro-Russian Far-Right Candidate From Presidential Elections

Romania has barred far-right, pro-Russian candidate Călin Georgescu from running in the May presidential elections, sparking protests from his supporters, according to Radio Free Europe’s Romanian service on March 9.

The decision is not yet legally binding and is expected to be appealed. Romania’s Constitutional Court is set to rule on the appeal by Wednesday.

Romania’s Central Election Commission in Bucharest has invalidated Georgescu’s candidacy. The commission reportedly received over a thousand complaints against him, citing his “anti-democratic and extremist stance.”

Following the decision by Romania’s Central Election Commission, Georgescu’s supporters started a protest in Bucharest.

Georgescu responded to Romania’s Central Election Authority’s decision, calling it a “direct blow to the heart.”

“A direct blow to the heart of global democracy! I have one more message—if democracy in Romania falls, the entire democratic world will fall! This is just the beginning. It’s that simple!” the official wrote on X, according to the news agency.

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Earlier, declassified documents from Romanian security services indicated that Georgescu received extensive promotion on TikTok via coordinated accounts, recommendation algorithms, and paid advertisements.

Additionally, the document noted that Romania has been the target of “aggressive hybrid attacks from Russia.” Moscow, however, denies any involvement in the country’s election campaigns.

Tech billionaire and Trump adviser Elon Musk criticized the election authority’s decision as “crazy” in a post on his social media platform, X.

On December 6, 2024, just two days before the presidential election’s second round, Romania’s Constitutional Court annulled the first-round results, where Georgescu had secured first place, due to evidence of suspected Russian interference.

Former constitutional prosecutor Liviu Drăgănescu explained, stating, “Information from the National Security Council suggests interference in Romania’s electoral process by both state and non-state actors.”