Romanian centrist bests right-wing candidate in surprise result

Romania’s nationalist presidential candidate, George Simion, lost to centrist candidate Nicusor Dan on Sunday in the second round of the Romanian elections after European Union (EU) bureaucrats confirmed the nullification of the nation’s elections in December 2024, according to multiple reports.

Simion lost the second round of elections, winning approximately 45% of the vote, while Dan is projected to have secured approximately 55% of the vote, according to reports from The New York Times, Politico EU, and BBC. The EU effectively upheld a ruling by the Romanian government nullifying right-wing populist Calin Georgescu’s victory in the 2024 election, and Romanian voters rejected a right-wing government with a new slate of candidates in 2025 in what some observers describe as an upset.

“Elections are about communities and in today’s elections, a community of Romanians who wants a profound change in Romania won. A community that wants a functioning of the state institutions. A community that wants a reduction of corruption,” Dan told his supporters, proclaiming his victory, according to Politico.

The results came as a surprise to some observers given that opinion polling showed him in the lead until the numbers tightened ahead of election day, according to the NYT.

Simion disputed the official results, proclaiming victory “in the name of the Romanian people,” but later conceded the race, according to Reuters. A right-wing figure, Simion is banned from entering Ukraine and has styled himself as a “Trumpist” candidate who rails against the establishment. He is also a critic of the EU, but has advocated for closer ties with NATO.

Dan ran on a centrist platform, endorsing close ties to the EU and NATO, as well as maintaining aid for Ukraine. He also ran on an anti-corruption platform, as Romania regularly ranks among the world’s most corrupt nations.

Critics have argued that the cancellation of the 2024 Romanian elections is an example of a broader European trend of curtailing certain civil liberties in order to preserve “democracy.”

Georgescu, despite polling in single digits in the run-up to the December 2024 election, won a shocking victory with 22.95% of the vote in the annulled election. However, the Romanian security services cancelled the results of the election in December after alleged Russian interference, while the Romanian Central Election Bureau barred Georgescu from running in the current election.

Critics of the cancellation have characterized the ruling as anti-democratic, arguing the government had effectively overturned the election with the EU’s approval. The European Court of Human Rights rejected Georgescu’s bid to overturn the election annulment in March, saying the application was “inadmissible,” according to Le Monde.

Romania utilizes a semi-presidential system, with the president serving as the head of state, commander-in-chief of the armed forces and the main representative in international affairs. The president appoints a prime minister to be confirmed by the parliament to be head of government, mainly dealing with domestic policy and everyday governmental activities.

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