2024 Presidential Election Update

The latest update on the presidential election in Romania

Vlad Palcu, 25.11.2024, 09:13

PRESIDENTIAL ELECTION – The hard-right independent candidate Călin Georgescu leads the list of partial results with 22.91% of total votes, followed by the representative of the reformist Save Romania Union (USR) party, Elena Lasconi with 19.16%, who currently has a very slim lead over of the candidate in third place, the incumbent Prime Minister and president of the largest party in Romania, PSD (Social-Democrats), Marcel Ciolacu.

Early exit polls on Sunday had put Ciolacu in a comfortable lead, projecting the center-right candidate, Lasconi, was trailing 5% behind. A little over a hundred votes currently separate the two candidates.

Georgescu’s result stunned both society and media, after the independent opted not to secure the support of any political faction, preferring to conduct his campaign on social media (particularly on TikTok), leveraging anti-establishment rhetoric to rally more voters.

A figure of great controversy, Georgescu is known for his overt support of Russia’s war in Ukraine, but also for his admiration of the Legionary Movement in Romania and his sovereigntist views. In a quick reaction, Russia’s state-controlled media outlet RIA Novosti called Georgescu a “candidate aligned to Russia”.

The presidential runoff is slated for December 8, while the parliamentary election will be held on December 1, the National Day of Romania.