The current mayor of Bucharest and independent and European candidate, Nicusor Dan, 55, has been imposed this Sunday to the ultra -nationalist George Simion, 38, in the second round of the presidential elections held in Romania, with 95% of the scrutinized vote. With the counting of the ballots practically resolved, the councilor of the Romanian capital obtains 54.22% of the support, for 45.75% its rival. Dan’s victory confirms the country’s attachment to the path undertaken within the European Union.
With a lot of emotion and concern, the Romanians turned early this Sunday to vote in the second round of the presidential elections, which in the first instance won, two weeks ago, with 41% of the votes.
The elections, considered the most important of the democratic era, since they settled the geopolitical future of the country, are the repetition of those held in November. Then, the pro -Russian and extremist candidate, Calin Georgescu – who has sponsored Simion – was imposed on the first envite in November and the Constitutional Court. This triggered a political implosion in this country in Eastern Europe that has also put on the European Union on guard.
On the afternoon of this Sunday, while the Romanians elected their future president, Telegram users in Romania received a message sent by an account assigned to the founder Pavel Durov. Shortly after, the Romanian Foreign Ministry denounced Russian interference. “During the current presidential elections of Romania, once again we see the brands of Russian interference. A viral campaign of false news in Telegram and other social media platforms aims to influence the electoral process,” said Andrei Tarnea, spokesman for the Foreign Ministry.
“In today’s elections he has won a Romanian community that wants to change Romania deeply, that state institutions work, corruption is reduced, a prosperous economic environment; a community that wants a society of dialogue and not hate,” Dan said after knowing the first polls at the foot of the urn.
For its part, Simion, leader of the Alliance for the Union of the Romanians (Aur), which rejected the data disseminated by the pollsters, claimed a “clear victory.” “We are not going to take revenge on anyone; from tomorrow we started the reconstruction of Romania,” said the Ultra on the stairs of the Senate, located in the town’s house, the second largest public building in the world. “I am the new president of Romania with a big difference, they correctly count each vote,” he said later in his social networks. The scrutiny took the reason.
The election day
The influx to the polls touched 65%, twelve points more than in the first round held on May 4. To this growth contributed the strong pull of the diaspora. With the still provisional data, 1,533,668 people exercised their right to vote from abroad, well above what was registered two weeks ago. The highest number of votes is that of Italy, followed by Germany, the United Kingdom and Spain.
“I hope that the fight against hate and manipulation wins; I want a free, democratic Romania, where we can contradict ourselves in a civilized way,” Cristina, a student of the Bucharest Aerospace Engineering Faculty, stressed during the electoral day. He had been waiting for more than half an hour to vote at the Electoral College located in the Regie Complex, the University Campus.
“I vote for the values with which I have grown up, respect and European course,” said this young woman, who was proudly looked around for the mobilization that her generation is leading. “It is a crucial moment for us, we cannot depart from Europe,” said Maria, a chemical engineering student, while hopefully while pointing out the long tail of people who wish to vote.
“We are interested in the future of Romania, we do not lose the hope that the country must continue advancing,” said Alex, a history professor, at his exit from the Spire Haret Institute, in the center of Bucharest, where many citizens also expected patiently. “Indifferently who is president, we must be happy because we have expressed our will,” he added. Beside him, Raluca was more skeptical with simion voters.
Moscow interference
For Cristian Pre. “The express support of high Russian positions and Alexander Dugin [el ideólogo del presidente Vladimir Putin] The objective of the elections has changed to Georgescu, since Russia had never been involved in Romania’s electoral processes so far, he had never supported a candidate for the State Headquarters, ”he says.
The political scientist, who was Secretary of State in the Ministry of Foreign, emphasizes that Romania had enjoyed a healthy democratic alternation until 2012, with a party in power and his opponent in the opposition. But, since then, the two main formations – the Social Democratic Party (PSD) and the National Party (NLP) – sealed an alliance that has monopolized the governments and slowed the birth of other formations.
“Nicusor created La Unión Savar Romania (USR) in 2016 with Europeanist ideas, while George Simion co -founded in 2019 the formation of the extreme right Aur, which has joined the nostalgic both of communism and the Romanian fascism of the interwar period,” says Pre.
