Romanians return to the polls and the far right hopes to gain ground

Romanians returned to the polls on Sunday to elect a new parliament, with the far right tipped to win, which could herald a change in the foreign policy of the NATO country bordering Ukraine.

The parliamentary vote comes at a time of political unrest, triggered when a top court ordered a recount of the first round of the separate presidential election on November 24.

The presidential vote was won by Calin Georgescu, a little-known far-right admirer of Russian President Vladimir Putin. The second round of this election is scheduled for December 8.

Despite accusations of Russian influence and alleged interference via TikTok, Sunday’s legislative elections went ahead as planned.

Polling stations opened at 7:00 a.m. (05:00 GMT) and will close at 9:00 p.m., with a poll result expected to be released shortly after.

The first official results are expected later this evening.

Florentina Noja, a 55-year-old engineer, said she voted for “young” candidates who, she said, were “a little less indoctrinated by the current system.”

“We have to try to start from scratch,” she told AFP in Bucharest.

She added that she hoped for “more transparency and less corruption”, while expressing fear that Romania would turn away from its pro-European path.

– A fragmented parliament –

Romania’s political landscape has been shaped by two major parties over the past three decades.

But analysts predict a fragmented parliament will emerge from Sunday’s vote, influencing the chances of forming a future government.

Polls show that several far-right parties – which oppose sending aid to Ukraine – are expected to win a combined vote share of more than 30 percent.

This country of 19 million people has so far resisted the rise of nationalism in the region.

But experts say the country now faces a situation unprecedented since the fall of communism in 1989, as anger over rising inflation and fears of being drawn into Russia’s war in neighboring Ukraine escalate. are increased.

George Sorin, a 45-year-old economist from Bucharest, told AFP he hoped the far right would achieve good results.

He said he believed the outgoing parliament had mostly served Ukraine’s interests by sending aid and had prioritized the European Union over “national interests.”

Among the far-right parties is the AUR, which leads the latest polls and whose leader, George Simion, won almost 14 percent of the vote in the presidential election.

There is also the far-right SOS Romania party, led by the fiery Diana Sosoaca, and the recently founded Youth Party (POT), which could reach the five percent threshold to enter Parliament.

In the opposing pro-European camp, the centrist USR hopes to achieve good results after its leader Elena Lasconi finished second in the presidential election.

– “Order or chaos” –

The ruling Social Democrats (PSD) and the National Liberal Party (PNL) suffered a heavy defeat in last week’s presidential election.

Outgoing Prime Minister Marcel Ciolacu said after the vote that Sunday’s parliamentary vote was a choice “between stability and chaos.”

Outgoing pro-EU President Klaus Iohannis said the vote was “crucial” and would determine Romania’s future, whether it “will remain a country of freedom and openness or collapse into toxic isolation and a dark past.

The legislative elections are taking place at a delicate time, with the highest court’s order to recount the ballots from the first round of last week’s presidential election causing widespread confusion.

After voting in the town of Foscani, AUR leader Simion claimed that some people were “trying to repeat the (presidential) election to get the result they want.”

“Last Sunday, the Romanian people spoke,” he said, insisting that the result of the presidential vote must be respected.

According to Septime Parvu of the think tank Expert Forum, the recount order issued by the Romanian Constitutional Court had “many negative effects”, including undermining trust in Romanian institutions.

“We have recounted votes in Romania in the past, but not millions of votes, with parliamentary elections in the middle of all this,” Parvu said.

The Supreme Court’s decision is likely to strengthen the far right, he said.

“No decision made during this crucial period should limit the right of Romanians to vote freely or further endanger the credibility of the electoral process,” the US Embassy in Romania said.