A little-known far-right populist, Calin Georgescu, is leading in the presidential elections in Romania. The preliminary voting results have fundamentally changed the political landscape of the country.
After counting 99.9% of the votes, Georgescu has garnered 22.9% of the votes.
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In second place is Elena Lasconi from the "Union for the Salvation of Romania" (USR) party, who received 19.16%. Lasconi surpassed leftist Prime Minister Marcel Ciolacu, who was the clear favorite to win in the first round, thanks to strong support from Romanian voters living abroad.
In fourth place is George Simion, the leader of the far-right Alliance for the Unity of Romanians.
According to the Romanian Electoral Authority, by the time the polling stations closed, 9.4 million people had voted - just over 52% of eligible voters.
Georgescu ran as an independent candidate and was not widely known. He was not among the favorites in most local polls. His success has shocked the political establishment in Romania.
After the voting on Sunday, Georgescu posted on Facebook that he voted "for the unjust, for the humiliated, for those who consider themselves unimportant, but in fact matter the most... Voting is a prayer for the nation."
Georgescu is a graduate of the University of Agricultural Sciences and Veterinary Medicine in Bucharest. In 1999, he obtained a PhD in Soil Science. Georgescu held various positions in Romania's Ministry of Environment during the 1990s. From 1999 to 2012, he served as Romania's representative on the United Nations Environment Programme's national committee.
In the lead-up to Sunday’s vote, many expected George Simion, a staunch supporter of elected U.S. President Donald Trump, to face Ciolacu in the second round.
He advocated for reunification with Moldova, which this year extended a five-year ban on his entry into the country for security reasons, and for the same reason, he is prohibited from entering neighboring Ukraine.
Before the first round of voting, Ciolacu stated that one of his main goals is to "convince Romanians that it is worth staying home or returning" to Romania, where a large diaspora is scattered across EU countries.
Christian Andrei, a political consultant from Bucharest, believes that Romania's large budget deficit, high inflation, and slowing economic growth may push candidates from major parties toward populist positions amid widespread dissatisfaction.
In the EU and NATO member country, thirteen candidates are vying for the presidency. The president is elected for a five-year term and holds significant decision-making power in areas such as national security, foreign policy, and judicial appointments.
The second round of the presidential vote will take place on December 8, one week after the parliamentary elections.