Nationalist Dominates First Round Of Romanian Presidential Election

In the latest chapter in the country’s months-long political drama that has seen an election thrown out and the winner charged with political crimes, 38-year-old conservative nationalist George Simion decisively won the first round of balloting in Romania’s “do-over” presidential election, sending him to a May 18 runoff where he’ll face centrist Bucharest mayor Nicusor Dan. 

Simion has likened his political philosophy to Donald Trump’s, saying his Alliance for the Union of Romanians party is “a Trumpist party,” and promising to “Make Romania Great Again.” The win is a buzzkill for Western leftists who’ve been enjoying the afterglow of comeback victories in Canada and Australia. 

Though his first-round win was expected, Simion far outperformed the polling, taking 41% of the vote, versus the 30% projected by a recent poll of polls. Dan took 21%, edging Crin Antonescu, a candidate from the current governing coalition, who took 20%. Simion clearly has the inside track for the runoff, as observers say he’s likely to gain quite a few votes from members of other parties whose beliefs align more closely with Simion than Dan. ”Simion has a bigger pool of votes than Dan at the moment,” political scientist Cristian Pirvulescu told Reuters.

Simion called the election a “victory for Romanian dignity…Despite the obstacles, despite the manipulation, despite a press paid to demean us day after day, Romanians have stood up.” The election has been closely watched by Western powers, as it could reshape Romania’s relationships with the European Union and NATO. 

However, while he’s criticized both entities, don’t expect Simion to usher Romania out of either of them. In various comments leading up to the election, he discounted the idea of Romania exiting NATO or the EU, sounded alarms over the supposed Russian menace, advocated continued sanctions against Moscow, and embraced increased European military spending.  Consider these Simion quotes from an interview with the Financial Times: 

Simion has promised, if elected, to help secure a position in Romanian government for Calin Georgescu — perhaps as prime minister. In a huge, poll-defying upset in November, nationalist Georgescu won the first round of balloting in Romania’s first go at this presidential election. Then, just two days before the runoff, the country’s Constitutional Court threw out the election and ordered it to be started anew — based on shaky allegations that his victory was the result of Russian interference. 

Georgescu was barred from running again. In February, Georgescu was arrested and questioned as he faced Orwellian allegations of disseminating “false information” and “incitement to actions against the constitutional order.” Upon his release from custody, he was forbidden from appearing on mass media or creating social media accounts. Huge protests followed each move by the government to banish Georgescu from politics and discourse. In addition to charges of illegal campaign tactics, he’s also been charged with helping to establish an organization “with a fascist, racist or xenophobic character.”

Campaigning last fall, Georgescu pledged to restore Romanian sovereignty and put an end to what he characterizes as subservience to NATO and the EU. He took a hard line against the presence of NATO’s missile defense system that’s based in Deveselu, southern Romania, calling it a “shame of diplomacy” that is more confrontational than peace-promoting. He has also pushed for Romania to pursue a non-interventionist policy in the Ukraine war, and said US arms-makers were manipulating the conflict.

Whatever his degree of nationalism, Simion is poised to become the third nationalist leading an eastern European country, alongside Hungary’s Viktor Orban and Slovakia’s Robert Fico — that is, unless the leftists once again find a way to bar a popular right-wing candidate from victory.