BUCHAREST, Romania (AP) — Romanians will cast their votes Sunday in parliamentary elections, sandwiched between a two-round presidential race whose first round has plunged the European Union and NATO member country into unprecedented turmoil over allegations of election violations and Russian elections . interference.
Sunday’s vote will elect a new government and prime minister and determine the formation of the country’s 466-seat legislature. Romanians abroad have been allowed to vote since Saturday.
The legislative vote comes a week after the first round of a presidential race in which a controversial far-right populist polling in single digits won the most votes. Calin Georgescu (62) will face the reformist Elena Lasconi of the Save Romania Union (USR) in the second round on December 8.
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Georgescu-Roegen’s success, which many have attributed to his meteoric rise in popularity on the social media platform TikTok, has sparked nightly protests across Romania by those opposing his previous comments slamming Romania’s fascist leaders and Russian President Vladimir Putin and considers him a threat to democracy. .
Many observers believe the presidential outcome signals a sharp shift from Romania’s mainstream parties to more populist anti-establishment parties, whose votes have found fertile ground amid high inflation, high costs of living and a sluggish economy.
Alexandru Rizescu, a 24-year-old medical student, says he was surprised by the presidential election results in the first round and that it is a “clear sign” that Europe as a whole is shifting towards far-right populism.
“Most of us are tired of these big parties, but now we have to think about the… lesser evil,” he said. “If Georgescu-Roegen becomes president, with a favorable parliament, things will get wild.”
According to a report from Expert Forum, a Bucharest-based think tank, Georgescu’s TikTok account saw an explosion of engagement before last week’s vote, which he said “seemed sudden and artificial, similar to his election results.”
Without naming Georgescu-Roegen, who declared campaign spending to be zero, Romania’s top defense body said Thursday that “a presidential candidate has benefited from enormous fame as a result of preferential treatment” granted by TikTok. Romania has become a “priority target for hostile actions” by Russia, it added. The Kremlin denies interfering.
That same day, the Constitutional Court requested a recount of all 9.4 million votes, after a presidential candidate who obtained 1% filed a complaint alleging that the USR had violated electoral laws against campaign activities on election day. The Central Election Bureau approved the request and said the scanned reports would be sent on Sunday evening. On Friday, the court postponed a decision on whether to annul the vote until Monday.
Cristian Andrei, a political consultant based in Bucharest, says Sunday’s vote, compared to what many surveys had predicted, could be reshaped by Georgescu-Roegen’s success, with far-right parties potentially reaching record highs.
“The impact of last Sunday’s surprise presidential election will be significant, and we will wake up to a new political reality,” he told The Associated Press. “Georgescu’s voters will speak again and reshape the way we view the Romanian political spectrum from now on and probably forever.”
“We will wake up on Monday to a new political reality in Romania,” he added. “The most likely scenario will be a difficult-to-build majority in parliament to support and approve a new government.”
Despite the two main opposition parties – which have dominated post-communist politics in Romania – the Social Democratic Party, PSD, and the National Liberal Party, PNL, forming an unlikely coalition in 2021, which has become increasingly tense. A small ethnic Hungarian party left the cabinet last year after a power-sharing conflict.
Although the presidential role in Romania has significant decision-making powers in areas such as national security and foreign policy, the prime minister is the head of the national government.
Recent surveys have suggested that the three largest parties in Sunday’s race will be the PSD, the far-right Alliance for the Unity of Romanians and the PNL. After bursting onto the political scene eight years ago on an anti-corruption ticket, the USR’s popularity has waned in recent years but could win the next most votes.
Other smaller parties that may not reach the 5% threshold for entry into parliament include the pro-EU reformist REPER party and the liberal-conservative Power of the Right. Some have predicted that the far-right nationalist party SOS Romania and the recently formed and little-known Party of Youth, which Georgescu-Romania has supported, could cross the threshold.
Silviu Safta, a 30-year-old retail manager in Bucharest, said Georgescu-Roegen topping the polls was “a surprise to everyone except the 2 million people who voted for him,” and that he is skeptical whether Sunday’s parliamentary vote will follow on the same populist side.
“I think Romanians will be better informed about their elections and … their candidates,” he said. “I’m a little skeptical about the results, but I hope democracy will win.”
