Romania in shock after little-known, far-right populist enters presidential runoff with most votes
A little-known, far-right populist secured the first round in Romania's presidential election, beating the incumbent prime minister, electoral data showed.
The political landscape in Romania is reeling after a little-known, far-right populist secured the first round in the presidential election, electoral data showed Monday, going from an obscure candidate to beating the incumbent prime minister.
Calin Georgescu, who ran independently, will face off against reformist Elena Lasconi in a runoff in two weeks.
Georgescu, 62, was ahead after nearly all ballots were counted with around 22.95% of the vote. Lasconi of the progressive Save Romania Union party, or USR, followed with 19.17%. She beat by a slim margin incumbent Prime Minister Marcel Ciolacu of the Social Democratic Party, or PSD, who stood at 19.15%. George Simion, the leader of the far-right Alliance for the Unity of Romanians, or AUR, took 13.87%.
It is the first time in Romania’s 35-year post-communist history for the PSD not to have a candidate in the second round of a presidential race, serving a huge blow to the country’s most powerful party and underscoring voters’ anti-establishment sentiment.
After polls closed on Sunday, 9.4 million people — about 52.5% of eligible voters — had cast ballots, according to the Central Election Bureau. The second round of the vote will be held on Dec. 8. Georgescu, 62, won 43.3% of the vote in Romania’s large diaspora, compared to Lasconi who got 26.8%.
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