Nationalist candidate George Simion won the first round of Romania’s presidential election with some 40.1% of the vote, according to the preliminary results on Sunday.
In a late-night political thriller, the official count saw the outsider independent candidate Nicușor Dan come into second place and the run-off, leapfrogging the big-tent coalition candidate Crin Antonescu — a result shocking the traditional political establishment in the EU and NATO member state.
The Simion vs Dan head-to-head is so unexpected that no one would have dared predict it six months ago.
Pre-election polls all favoured Simion to win the first round. However, the result by Dan, the mayor of Bucharest, sent a clear message to the ruling coalition, which got together to nominate Antonescu as the main party’s candidate.
Romania now faces a tough battle in the second round in two weeks, where it will have to choose between an inward, nationalist candidate and a pro-EU and pro-NATO one.
Romanians voted for individuals, not parties
After the initial exit polls showed Simion in the lead on Sunday, most party leaders and candidates announced they would wait for the final results. However, Simion had already declared a “victory for Romania’s dignity” and called for vigilance in counting the votes to prevent fraud.
Simion has been riding an anti-establishment wave, fuelled by ultranationalist Calin Georgescu, the ex-presidential candidate whose victory in the cancelled elections in December 2024 has thrown Romania into unprecedented turmoil.
Also, parts of Romania's diaspora showed strong support for Simion: 77% of Romanians voting in Italy and 80% of those in Spain backed the AUR party leader on Sunday, preliminary results show.
He broke away from the traditional on-stage appearance next to other party leaders and supporters, opting for a Georgescu-style statement alone at a desk.
“Today, the Romanian people have voted, the Romanian people have spoken. This is a victory of Romanian dignity, the victory of those who haven’t lost hope, of those who still believe in Romania, in a free, respected, sovereign country,” Simion said on Sunday evening.
Simion, whose popularity has steadily risen in recent years, is a vocal critic of the EU, particularly its continued support of Ukraine. He also has a standing ban on entry to Ukraine and Moldova.
Judging by the results, Romanians have chosen to vote for individuals, and not political parties, pointing to the failure of the big tent coalition — which included the centre-left PSD, liberal party PNL and the Hungarian minority party UDMR/RMDSZ — to inspire its supporters.
According to Euronews Romania sources, the liberals have already lobbed accusations at the PSD of not doing enough to mobilise their voters across the country, especially in rural areas, to throw their weight behind the coalition candidate, Antonescu.
Some 53% of Romanians went to the polls on Sunday, according to official figures, indicating higher interest among those eligible to vote than in the annulled election in December.
For more updates, follow Euronews Romania’s live coverage on www.euronews.ro.
