The Social Democratic Party (PSD), of current Prime Minister Marcel Ciolacu, would have won the legislative elections held this Sunday in Romania, according to the exit polls released at the close of the polling stations this Sunday. The second most voted party would have been the far-right Alliance for the Union of Romanians (AUR, gold in Romanian), which some polls had placed as a favorite in recent days. If these first polls are confirmed, the results would be a new surprise in Romania, a country that last week suffered a political earthquake with the unexpected victory in the first round of the presidential elections. With 45% of the vote counted, the results are quite similar to what was predicted in the polls.
“I have understood the responsibility we have towards Romania. We all have to look towards today’s result. It is an important signal that the Romanians sent to the political class,” Ciolacu declared at the PSD headquarters as soon as he learned of the polls. “Let’s continue developing the country with European money, but at the same time let’s protect identity, national values and faith,” added the prime minister at the PSD headquarters as soon as he learned about the polls.
The Social Democrats would have obtained a range of between 24.8% and 26%, ahead of AUR, led by George Simion, which would have to settle for between 19% and 21.6%, according to Curs surveys and Inscop. “This is a moment that history will remember as decisive, in which, thanks to our common will, Romania is reborn. We are here, standing, we are the next step, each one of us, generation after generation, proving that nothing can defeat a united nation,” Simion declared after learning of the polls. After these words, he gave his support to the also ultra Georgescu for the second round of the presidential elections.
The strength of the extreme right in Romania is reflected in the fact that, in addition to the second position for AUR, the polls anticipate the entry into Parliament of two other formations of this trend: SOS, of the controversial MEP Diana Sosoaca, and the Young People’s Party, which would have taken 7% and 5.5%, respectively.
The third most voted formation would have been the National Liberal Party (PNL), which governs in coalition with the Social Democrats, with a range of 14.6% to 15.5%. They would be followed by the conservative liberals of the Union Save Romania (USR), with a percentage between 12.6% and 15.7%. These polls do not include the estimate of the diaspora vote, which could considerably change the final result.
The agitation unleashed by the presidential elections on November 24 and by suspicions of fraud that have led the Constitutional Court to consider the annulment of the first round held that day, a controversial measure on which the judges must rule this Monday and which has supposed the paralysis of the campaigns of the two candidates.
To Georgescu’s surprise
“I voted for peace, not war. “I voted for respect, for total political responsibility, totally dedicated to the Romanian nation,” declared this Sunday Georgescu, the ultra who won the presidential election without being supported by any party and Georgescu has not given any expenditure data for his presidential campaign. , but the meteoric rise of its popularity has raised suspicions of fraud and foreign interference. Shortly after the results were known on Sunday the 24th, the Romanian authorities asked the European Commission to investigate the Chinese social network for alleged non-compliance with the EU Digital Services Law. They believe, as Expert Forum, an organization specialized in the fight against fake news, has demonstrated, that the messages from the far-right and pro-Russian candidate appeared without specific identification of electoral content.
In the presidential elections, Georgescu achieved the support of more than two million Romanians, 22.9% of the electorate, when the polls did not even give him a double-digit figure. She was ahead of Lasconi, 52, the center-right mayor of the small town of Campulung, who won 19.7% of the vote, and the current prime minister, the social democrat Ciolacu, who was the favorite and had only 19.5%, leaving them out of the second round, which is expected to be held next Sunday. It was precisely his center-left formation that wanted to organize the parliamentary and presidential elections in a row to take advantage of the victory that the polls predicted for Ciolacu to ensure his appointment as head of state.
If the already known presidential results are not canceled, Lasconi will face Georgescu, 62, nicknamed the Messiah of TikTok for his religious statements. Romania would witness a fight between a pro-European candidate and an anti-Western one who has openly expressed his admiration for the president of Russia, Vladimir Putin, and for fascist leaders from interwar times such as Marshal Ioan Antonescu, who pushed Romania to ally with Germany. Nazi in World War II. Georgescu has described them as heroes of the Romanian nation. His campaign, which defends a “neutral” Romania, with echoes of pro-Russian narratives, has raised concerns about Bucharest’s commitment to NATO and the European Union.
This Eastern European country constitutes an essential leg of the security of the Black Sea, a very hot spot due to the war in Ukraine, a nation with which Romania shares a 650-kilometer border. In addition, the country has 5,000 NATO soldiers against any threat from Moscow. The United States ambassador in Bucharest, Kathleen Kavalac, expressed her concern about the current situation on Saturday: “Our hope is that Romania’s solid record as a trusted democratic partner in Europe and in the Euro-Atlantic community is not tarnished.”
The Romanian Ministry of Defense, the main guarantor of logistical support to Moldova, is analyzing the possibility of shooting down Russian drones that enter its land space, after fragments of these guided unmanned aircraft have fallen several times within its borders since that the war began almost three years ago.
At a reception to commemorate Romania’s National Day, which was celebrated this Sunday, the outgoing president, the liberal Klaus Iohannis, declared on Saturday that his country is faced with the “existential” situation of choosing between “democracy or isolationism.” “We have to choose: democracy and the fundamental values that have guided us as a modern European nation or isolationism, extremist mysticism and hatred of Western pluralism,” he told politicians, diplomats and cultural and sports figures.
