Romania may rerun first round of presidential election, says electoral commission chief
Photo: Romania may once again hold the first round of the presidential election (Getty Images)
The first round of the presidential election in Romania could be held again if the country’s Supreme Court decides to annul the results of the voting on November 24, according to Electoral Commission Chief Toni Grebla, reports Reuters.
Grebla told Radio România Actualități that the rerun could take place on December 15, with the second round on December 29.
The conservative candidate, Cristian TerheșCristian Terheș, filed a lawsuit asking for the voting results to be annulled. The court ruled to recount the 9.46 million votes cast in the first round. It will reconvene on November 29 to review the request.
Election commission representatives said that it would not be possible to count the votes quickly enough to complete the recount before the hearings.
Authorities said they have evidence of interference in the campaign by hostile actors.
Independent far-right politician, Călin Georgescu, who was supported by less than 10% of voters according to polls, won the election, a result that raised many questions.
The country’s Supreme Defense Council claimed to have evidence of interference, stating that Romania is a target of hostile actors like Russia, and that TikTok had given one candidate more advertising opportunities without requiring them to label the content as political.
Romania, a pro-Western country and a staunch ally of Ukraine, is also scheduled to hold parliamentary elections on December 1, with the second round of the presidential elections between Georgescu and centrist candidate Elena Lasconi taking place a week later.
Grebla informed Reuters that the parliamentary elections on December 1 will take place as planned, despite the uncertainty caused by the recount of the first-round presidential election results.
For more on the situation in Romania, read the RBC-Ukraine article Another Hungary? Will Romania become Ukraine's new problematic neighbor after the elections.
