Romania’s
hard-right candidate looks to top Sunday presidential vote
Reuters/tm
30.04.2025, 19:51
https://tvpworld.com/86462327/romanias-hard-right-candidate-looks-to-top-sunday-presidential-vote
Romanians
vote on Sunday in a presidential election re-run that could propel
ultranationalist George Simion to power, an outcome likely to cause unease in
the European Union and NATO and unsettle investors.
Politics
The hard-right eurosceptic leads opinion polls before the
first round of voting in the EU and NATO member states, five months after a
court canceled the original vote because of alleged Russian interference.
Moscow has denied the allegations.
Simion hopes to benefit from widespread public anger over
the cancellation after taking over from far-right contender Călin Georgescu,
who topped the canceled ballot but is now barred from running.
Simion, 38, opposes military aid to neighboring Ukraine, is
critical of the EU’s leadership and has supported U.S. President Donald Trump’s
Make America Great Again movement.
Victory
could isolate Romania
A conservative Christian, Simion supported a failed 2018
referendum intended to prevent same-sex couples from being able to marry.
A Simion victory could isolate Romania abroad, erode private
investment, and make the country a less predictable and cooperative member of
NATO over military aid to Kyiv, playing into the hands of Russia as it wages
war in Ukraine.
If elected, Simion has said he will make public “how much we
contributed to the war effort in Ukraine to the detriment of subsidies for
Romanian children and pensions for our elderly.”
“It is very clear that a strong anti-Western trend has been
built,” said Cristian Pîrvulescu, a political scientist.
Simion is polling at around 30% in opinion surveys, giving
him a comfortable lead over two centrists but suggesting he will not win enough
votes to avoid a second-round runoff on May 18 against whoever comes
second.
Politics
His main election rivals are two centrists, former senator
Crin Antonescu and Bucharest Mayor Nicușor Dan.
Antonescu, 65, is backed by the three parties in the current
pro-Western government. Dan, 55, is running as an independent on a reform
platform.
Both are pro-EU and NATO and back Ukraine. Antonescu would
likely back the current government if he won the election. Dan has said he
would favor a new pro-Western government.
Far-right
gets second chance
Many voters have responded positively to Simion, who
finished fourth in the original vote and then rallied behind Georgescu, who
faces charges over his support for fascist groupings and campaign-funding
issues.
Election authorities are also looking into Simion’s campaign
funding.
“He stood by the man who only wanted the best for this
country, he has shown honesty compared with the other candidates and I hope
that he restores democracy in Romania through his actions,” said Vlad Popa, a
50-year-old lawyer.
Politics
Romania’s president is limited to two five-year terms and
has a semi-executive role, which includes commanding the armed forces and
chairing the security council that decides on military aid.
The president represents Romania at EU and NATO summits, can
veto important EU votes and appoints the prime minister, chief judges,
prosecutors and secret service heads.
Simion has supported restoring Romania to its 1940 borders,
which include territories now in Bulgaria, Moldova and Ukraine. He is banned
from entering the latter two.
JP Morgan said an Antonescu win would imply the status quo
and that victory for Simion would carry the “largest risk of re-adjusting the
ruling coalition and thus the highest uncertainty.”
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