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2024 Romanian presidential election
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
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Presidential elections were held in Romania on 24 November 2024.[1][2][3] A second round was due to be held on 8 December 2024 as no candidate achieved an absolute majority in the first round.[2][4][3] However, on 6 December 2024 the Constitutional Court annulled the election, alleging that a Russian influence operation had impacted the vote. This was the ninth presidential election held in post-revolution Romania.
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The result of the first round was a surprise, with independent nationalist candidate Călin Georgescu achieving a relative majority of votes, while the center-right politician Elena Lasconi finished second and also advanced to the runoff vote. Initially viewed as a minor candidate with little chance of victory, Georgescu quickly gained significant support through campaigning on non-traditional media outlets such as TikTok, receiving particular popularity among those disaffected with current Romanian politics, including youth, farmers, rural voters, and members of the working class. He was considered the front-runner in the race,[5] and polling conducted after the first round of voting found him to be the most popular figure in the country's politics.[6]
Leading issues included corruption, LGBTQ rights, the role of Christianity in public life, and the ongoing Russo-Ukrainian War. Georgescu, who has run on a nationalist platform, has criticised the National Coalition for Romania, a grand coalition of Romania's two largest parties, as corrupt. He has favoured increasing the role of Christianity in public life, promised to outlaw "LGBT propaganda",[7] put forward plans towards partly nationalising important industries,[8] and promoted neutrality and national sovereignty, as well as non-interventionism towards the Ukrainian War, without exiting NATO or the European Union. Lasconi supports secularism, further European integration, alignment with the United States and the West, and increasing military funding towards Ukraine.
Georgescu's campaign has been endorsed by an assortment of Christian democratic, nationalist and agrarian political parties, including the Alliance for the Union of Romanians, S.O.S. Romania, Party of Young People, Romanian Socialist Party and the National Peasants' Party.[9] Lasconi's campaign has been endorsed by the National Liberal Party, Democracy and Solidarity Party, Save Romania Union, and Renewing Romania's European Project, among several other parties. This was the first time since 2000 that a nationalist candidate made it into the second round instead of either the National Liberals or the now defunct Democratic Liberal Party. It was also the first time in the post-Communist period that the Social Democrats failed to reach the run-off.[10][11]
The aftermath of the first presidential vote was controversial and led Romania to the brink of a political crisis.[12] President Iohannis, who chairs the country's Supreme Council of Defence, accused Georgescu's campaign of being supported by Russia. Following vote rigging allegations made by a minor candidate, the Constitutional Court of Romania ordered a recount,[13][14] but ultimately decided to confirm the results of the first round on 2 December.[15] On 6 December, the Constitutional Court reversed their decision and controversially annulled the first round of the election,[16] after intelligence documents were declassified stating that Russia had run a coordinated online campaign to promote Georgescu.[17][18][19]
On 20 December, an investigation was published showing that the PNL, one of the governing parties, had paid for the TikTok campaigns that the Supreme Council of National Defence said were "identical" to the online campaign launched by Russia before the invasion of Ukraine and which led to the cancellation of the first round.[20][21]
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Background
Following consultations with various parliamentary groups, the government of Prime Minister Marcel Ciolacu announced on 4 July 2024 that presidential elections would take place later that year on 24 November for a first round and 8 December for a second round. It also set parliamentary elections for 1 December.[22] Prior to this, there was a speculation according to which the forthcoming Romanian presidential elections might have occurred earlier than to term, in the event that incumbent President Klaus Iohannis would have been nominated as Secretary General of NATO and that he would have accepted the nomination in the meantime, then the election would have likely been called earlier than planned.[23] This ultimately did not come to pass, as Dutch former Prime Minister Mark Rutte was chosen to succeed the incumbent Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg.[24]
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Candidates
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National Liberal Party (PNL)
President Klaus Iohannis was not eligible for another candidacy, therefore the party sought another suitable candidate. Former Prime Minister and former PNL president Ludovic Orban stated in Tecuci, Galați County, on 22 May 2021, that he did not "rule out" a candidacy in 2024.[25] On 25 June 2021, then-Prime Minister Florin Cîțu stated in Piatra Neamț that he is "currently not considering" a presidential candidacy.[26] Furthermore, fellow party leaders considered proposing Iohannis as Prime Minister after he ceases to be president.[27] On 15 September 2024, Nicolae Ciucă, who was Prime Minister from 2021 to 2023, was formally designated as the PNL candidate for the presidency of Romania.[28]
Social Democratic Party (PSD)
In a televised talk show on 24 April 2021, the party leader Marcel Ciolacu stated that it would be "very likely" that the party president (himself, at that time) would not run for president in 2024.[29] Asked about considering a presidential candidacy, member of the Chamber of Deputies, Alexandru Rafila vaguely answered on 4 July 2021 "never say never" but underlined that running for president is "definitely not my goal".[30] In another televised talk show, former Prime Minister Sorin Grindeanu stated that the party is "going for the win" in all elections scheduled for 2024 (legislative, local, European Parliament, and presidential), and he "did not rule out" that Mircea Geoană could be again the party's presidential candidate.[31] Geoană ran for president in 2009 but narrowly lost in the second round to Traian Băsescu, who was then re-elected for a second and final term. Speculations were proven clear that Geoană was running for the presidency in 2024 but did not receive PSD support as it was initially believed according to incumbent PSD president Marcel Ciolacu.[32][33] On 26 August 2024, at the two-day PSD Congress, Ciolacu was officially designated as the party's presidential candidate.[34]
Save Romania Union (USR)
Former 2019 candidate and party co-president Dan Barna stated in several interviews in April 2021 that his candidacy was "not ruled out" and a "real scenario".[35] Party co-president Dacian Cioloș stated in an interview on 18 February 2021 that he was also considering a potential candidacy.[36] On 1 October 2021, Cioloș stated that his objective was to win the 2024 presidential election.[37] On 26 June 2024, at the two-day USR Congress, Elena Lasconi, the newly elected party president, was officially designated as the party's presidential candidate.[38][39]
People's Movement Party (PMP)
Cristian Diaconescu, then newly elected president of the party in early 2021, was designated the party's presidential candidate;[40] however, some analysts believed that Mihail Neamțu, a current member of the PMP, might run instead, either as an independent (with PMP support) or as a candidate from another party.[41] On 23 March 2022, Cristian Diaconescu was excluded from the party by the new leadership, thus losing his presidential candidate status previously granted by the PMP.[42] Diaconescu subsequently filed to run as an independent candidate.[43]
Force of the Right (FD)
On 28 June 2022, former Prime Minister, former PNL president, and current Force of the Right (FD) leader Ludovic Orban announced that he would run for president in 2024, also stating that he doesn't want to support any other candidate, being tremendously disappointed by the incumbent Klaus Iohannis.[44] Orban was the second former PNL president to run for the Romanian presidency supported by a breakaway faction of the PNL after Călin Popescu-Tăriceanu (Prime Minister between 2004 and 2008) who ran on behalf of the Liberal Reformist Party (PLR; one of the predecessors of the Romanian ALDE founded in 2015 through a merger with the Conservative Party (PC) and subsequently absorbed by the PNL in March 2022) in 2014, during that year's presidential election. On 18 November 2024, during a live TV debate, Ludovic Orban announced his withdrawal from the presidential race and his endorsement to Elena Lasconi, the USR candidate.[45] His late withdrawal kept his name on the ballot and any vote received would still be counted as his. Technically, he continued campaigning but delivered messages of endorsement for Lasconi.[3]
Romanian Ecologist Party (PER)
PER announced on 28 October 2024 its endorsement for Cristian Diaconescu.[46]
Alliance for the Union of Romanians (AUR)
The Alliance for the Union of Romanians nominated its leader George Simion.[47]
S.O.S. Romania
The Constitutional Court of Romania (CCR) notably disqualified far-right and pro-Russia S.O.S. Romania candidate Diana Șoșoacă from running, ruling that her public statements and conduct "systematically" violate the country's constitutional foundation of membership in Euro-Atlantic structures.[48][49] In response, Șoșoacă claimed "this proves the Americans, Israelis and the European Union have plotted to rig the Romanian election before it has begun".[50] The court's ruling, which was split 5–2 along party lines, was criticised by some[weasel words] for being politically motivated, undemocratic and a result of corruption,[48] including by the PNL, which ended its governing coalition with the PSD as a result of the decision.[51] PNL president Nicolae Ciucă claimed the court's decision showed the involvement of the PSD and endangers democracy in Romania, while PSD president Marcel Ciolacu reacted by saying that the Court should be reformed.[52]
Călin Georgescu
Călin Georgescu, a Romanian nationalist who is a former member of the AUR, ran as an independent.[53] He primarily conducted his campaigns through TikTok.[54]
Candidates previously qualified for the second round
These candidates were placed on the first and the second place in the first round, but none of them reached at least 50% of the votes. Thus, they qualified for the second round, to be held on 8 December 2024. The first round was later annulled by the Constitutional Court of Romania, invalidating this second round.[55]
Candidates actively competed only in the first round
These candidates' bids were validated by the Central Electoral Bureau (BEC). Some candidacies were challenged by the CCR, but rejected those claims. Excludes a valid candidate that withdrew during the electoral campaign and announced his endorsement to another candidate, while his name remained on the ballot.
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Withdrawn candidates
These individuals were part of the race in some way and their plans stopped. Some failed to file their bid to BEC, withdrew from the race, or recanted their interest in the presidential office. Here are also included candidates who are no longer in the race due to their bid being rejected by BEC, or whose bid or candidacy were legally barred by the CCR, and a candidate that withdrew during the electoral campaign and announced his endorsement to another candidate, while his name remained on the ballot.
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Declined to be candidates
These individuals have been the subject of speculation, but have publicly denied their interest in running for president. Here are also included individuals legally barred from running for president.
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Timeline
| Validated candidate | |
| During CCR screening | |
| During BEC screening | |
| Official campaign before BEC filing | |
| Intention | |
| Considering | |
| Withdrawn candidate | |
| Second round | |
| First round | |
| BEC filing deadline | |
| 2024 European elections and 2024 Local elections | |
| 2020 Parliamentary elections | |
| 2020 Local elections |
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Leading issues
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Christianity in public life
The role of Christianity and patriotism in Romanian public life has become a leading issue in the campaign. Often both supported and mocked as "The TikTok Messiah" for his religious nationalist messaging and use of the app TikTok, Georgescu has gained appeal among religious Romanians, appealing to natalism, family values, patriotism, and traditionalism.[305][306]
Corruption
Both Călin Georgescu and Elena Lasconi have criticised corruption in Romania, which has become central to their appeal.[307] Georgescu has accused the mainstream political parties, particularly the National Coalition for Romania between the center-left Social Democratic Party and the center-right National Liberal Party, of fostering corruption.[308]
Geopolitics
Lasconi favours Romania closely aligning with the United States, European Union, and NATO, while opposing Russia, while Georgescu has stated that he favours Romania's geopolitical non-alignment between the two power blocs.[309] Georgescu has also pledged to end military aid to Ukraine.[310] Following the first round, Lasconi said that Romania was in "a historical confrontation between preserving Romania's young democracy ... and those who want to return Romania to the Russian sphere of influence". She also accused Georgescu of being an isolationist and an "open admirer of Vladimir Putin". Georgescu denied being an extremist or a fascist and said that he is "completely dedicated to the Romanian people", adding: "We remain directly linked to European values, but we must find our (own) values."[309]
LGBTQ rights
LGBTQ rights are expected to be a major issue in the campaign. In the second round of the campaign, LGBTQ rights organizations have made strong endorsements for Lasconi, despite her past comments, while Georgescu explicitly rejects LGBTQ rights movements.[311] Lasconi's positions have become significantly favourable towards LGBTQ rights. Earlier in 2023, Lasconi stated that she would have voted "Yes" during the failed referendum on the constitutional prohibition of same-sex unions. Her daughter, Oana, subsequently denounced her as a "homophobe" and stated that she was "shocked and disgusted" at her mother.[312] Lasconi immediately retracted this position, stated that she does not oppose civil unions or (in the distant future) marriage for LGBTQ couples, while stating that her party remains open for individuals who are gender or sexual minorities, and that the party is open to all, "be they ... atheists [or] LGBTQ individuals".[311]
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Debates
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The debates[b] started on 28 October 2024, three days after the start of the campaign. The last first round debate was broadcast on 21 November 2024, 8:30 hours before the electoral campaign ended. There had been 38 broadcast debates: 30 televised, six on the radio and three online. The broadcasters were:
- TVR Info (seven debates and one in syndication);
- Radio România Actualități (six debates);
- TVR 1 (five debates);
- Digi24 (four debates);
- TVR Timișoara (three debates);
- Euronews România, România TV, B1 TV and Metropola TV (each with two debates)
- A7 TV, Gândul, Antena 3, Ștefan Mandachi's video podcast, Cosmin Nedelcu's video podcast, TVR Moldova and TVR International (each with a sole debate; the last two only in syndication).
All the debates, except #17, #19 and #31:
Bucharest
Bucharest
Debates #17, #19 and #31:
Timișoara
Timișoara
Sites of the presidential debates
Schedule
Participation
The following is a table of participating candidates in each debate:
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Opinion polls
Endorsements
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Party endorsements
The table below lists the political parties and other political organizations that supported any of the candidates in the first and second rounds of the presidential election.
Second round candidate endorsements
Other endorsements
Recently reelected Moldovan president Maia Sandu, who is also a Romanian citizen, announced her support for Elena Lasconi in the second round of the election.[487] Georgian president Salome Zourabichvili also expressed support for Lasconi, just like French President Emmanuel Macron.[488][489] Răzvan Burleanu, the president of the Romanian Football Federation, urged fans to support "European values".[490] The Romanian Orthodox Church said it supported Romania's membership in the European Union.[491]
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Results
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By county
The results of the first round of voting were widely described as a shock, with both second round contenders Călin Georgescu and Elena Lasconi outperforming polling expectations.[10][11] The underwhelming performance of Prime Minister Marcel Ciolacu led to the first presidential election in the history of post-communist Romania in which the Social Democratic candidate did not make it to the second round of voting. The National Liberals marked their worst ever result in a presidential race, as Nicolae Ciucă ended up in fifth place with 8.79% of the vote. Right-wing populist George Simion also registered a weak result, after it was widely speculated he would advance to the second round in December.[492]
Turnout was higher than in 2019, with 9,465,257 Romanians showing up to the polls, representing 52.56% of the eligible electorate.
Maps
Annulled first round results by county
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Aftermath and controversies
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After failing to advance to the runoff, Marcel Ciolacu announced his resignation as leader of the Social Democratic Party on 25 November; however, he will remain the Prime Minister until a new government is formed following parliamentary elections on 1 December.[493] Nicolae Ciucă also resigned as leader of the National Liberal Party after failing to advance to the runoff.[494] Amid discussion over the role of social media in Călin Georgescu's strong showing, Ciolacu also called for funding for Georgescu's campaign on TikTok to be reviewed, while MEP and Renew Europe leader Valérie Hayer called on TikTok's CEO to answer questions about the platform's role in the election before the European Parliament, citing the Digital Services Act.[495] The National Audiovisual Council of Romania also called for the European Commission to investigate TikTok's role in the election, while the national telecommunications regulator Ancom called for TikTok to be suspended as part of an investigation into electoral manipulation. Romanian president Klaus Iohannis also accused TikTok of failing to mark Georgescu's account as that of a political candidate. TikTok subsequently denied favouring Georgescu. Protests also broke out against Georgescu in Bucharest and several other cities in Romania.[496] An analysis by the Romanian news outlet G4 Media found that Georgescu mounted a "propaganda machine" using thousands of supposed "volunteers" to spread his campaign messaging, adding that those involved received pre-made materials on Telegram that could readily be posted as comments on TikTok and other platforms.[497] TikTok executives said that they had taken down several networks engaged in election interference in Romania.[498]
On 27 November, two minor candidates, Sebastian Constantin Popescu and Cristian Terheș submitted requests to the Constitutional Court of Romania to annul the results of the first round of the election.[499] On 28 November, the court ruled unanimously to recount all ballots cast in the first round,[500] with a decision on whether to annul the results expected on 2 December.[494] In their appeals, Terheș accused the USR of violating election law by campaigning among diaspora voters on polling day and alleged that votes cast for Ludovic Orban had been transferred to Elena Lasconi. Popescu accused Georgescu, who declared zero campaign spending, of failing to disclose financing linked to TikTok. The Central Election Bureau later said that scanned reports were due to be delivered by 1 December and the original ballots by 3 December.[501] Additionally, the Supreme Council of National Defence convened and called for an investigation into alleged attacks on the electoral infrastructure and suspicions of illegal campaigning by Călin Georgescu.[502] Georgescu denied the accusations against him, while Lasconi criticised the recount and called on the Central Election Bureau to handle the process "wisely".[501]
In November 2024, Călin Georgescu spoke with Israeli Diaspora Affairs Minister Amichai Chikli.[503] The Romanian Ambassador to Israel accused Israel of interfering in the 2024 Romanian presidential election in favour of Georgescu.[504]
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Annulment
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On 2 December, the Constitutional Court ruled unanimously to confirm the first round results and upheld the organisation of the runoff on 8 December between Georgescu and Lasconi;[15] however, the Court reversed its decision on 6 December and annulled the election results after President Iohannis allowed the declassification of information in the Supreme Council of National Defence. The Romanian Service of Information also declared that Georgescu said he had a "Zero lei electoral campaign budget", but subsequent investigations revealed an undeclared donation of up to €1,000,000 from third parties. This prompted the Court to annul the election results.[505]
The annulment was condemned by both Georgescu and Lasconi, with Georgescu describing the court's verdict as a "formalised coup d'état",[506] and Lasconi calling it "illegal [and] immoral" and stating that it "crushes the very essence of democracy". Fourth-placed George Simion also called the verdict a "coup d'état in full swing" but urged against street protests. Third-placed Marcel Ciolacu called the annulment "the only correct decision".[506]
President Iohannis also said the court's decision was legitimate and should be respected, adding that he would remain in office until a successor is inaugurated.[507] Russian state interference in the election was widely reported, including state-sponsored cyberattacks, and the annulment was described as "an extraordinary step" by The Washington Post.[16][17][18]
The annulment also forced a halt to advanced voting in 951 overseas polling stations for the diaspora that had opened on 6 December, after approximately 50,000 Romanians had cast ballots.[508][509]
On 7 December, prosecutors searched properties across the country in an investigation into the financing of a candidate's campaign, with investigators saying money laundering was used to fund the campaign. Although the candidate's name was not revealed, Georgescu and his campaign were reportedly the target of the searches.[510]
On the day of the cancelled runoff, Georgescu and around 100 of his supporters held a protest outside a polling station in Bucharest demanding that the election be held. An online petition calling for free elections was also launched by the AUR, which supported Georgescu.[511] Following the annulment of the presidential election, the new government formed after the 2024 Romanian parliamentary election on 1 December is expected to set new dates for a presidential vote.[512] Ilie Bolojan, president of the PNL, said the rerun will likely occur either before Easter in late March or early April, or after Easter in May.[513]
On 17 December, the European Commission announced an investigation into TikTok over interference in the elections.[514] On 21 December, the political magazine Politico Europe reported that the pro-European PNL had financed a general political campaign, the hashtags of which were then used to promote Georgescu.[515] On 12 January 2025, tens of thousands of people protested in Bucharest against the annulment of the election.[516]
Some Romanian politicians supported Georgescu's participation in the new presidential elections in May 2025. Former liberal leader Crin Antonescu said: "It is not just about [Georgescu] or his statements but about a broader theme — society's trust in the fairness and reliability of the democratic system, particularly elections."[517]
On 21 January, the European Court of Human Rights rejected an appeal by Georgescu to reverse the annulment, saying that it did not have jurisdiction over the case.[518] Six days later, the Venice Commission of the Council of Europe published an "Urgent Report on the cancellation of election results by Constitutional Courts", which had been commissioned by the Council of Europe President, Theodoros Rousopoulos, on 13 December 2024.[519]
At the 2025 Munich Security Conference US Vice President JD Vance criticised the annulment, stating that "If your democracy can be destroyed with a few $100,000 of digital advertising from a foreign country, then it wasn't very strong to begin with".[520] He said that the Romanian courts had decided to annul the elections under pressure from "flimsy suspicions of an intelligence agency and enormous pressure from its continental neighbors" (referring to the Romanian Intelligence Service).[521]
On 24 April 2025, a judge of the Ploiești Court of Appeals overturned and suspended the Constitutional Court's ruling that had annulled the election. The Central Electoral Bureau subsequently stated that the 2025 election, due on 4 May, would continue as normal. The Prosecutor's Office attached to the Ploiești Court of Appeals appealed the decision, and the Superior Council of Magistracy referred the judge for potential disciplinary misconduct.[522]
In the first round of the 2025 presidential election, Simion won 41 per cent of the vote in the first round on 4 May, with Nicușor Dan defeating him 53.6%–46.4% in the runoff on 18 May.[523] Dan's presidency began on 26 May 2025.[524]
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See also
Notes
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- In order for a debate to be counted as such, there must be at least two candidates present. The following situations are not considered proper debates: one candidate with one or multiple interviewers; one candidate with a representative (or more) of other candidate(s); only representatives of candidates (no matter how many candidates were represented); one candidate debating a previously recorded video of other candidate(s); short live statements of a candidate (via telephone or video streaming) inserted during a show with only one (other) candidate; short coincidental encounters of candidates (in a non-previously organised debate) that spoke to each other (and were recorded, even on professional cameras in TV studios). Any debate must be publicly broadcast. Negotiations behind closed doors, "strategic meetings" among candidates or any other type of discreet talks are not proper debates, even if their content (or bits of it) was released to the public, with/without the candidates' approval of its release.
Debates may be broadcast on radio, television, or the internet. Candidates may show up in person or participate in the debate via telephone or video streaming for the entire debate time. Candidates who left the debate before 10% of the debate time elapsed (after a few words or several minutes) are considered absentees and their leaving is noted as such. In this particular situation (if it will occur), the debate is considered a valid one, because at least two candidates were present at its beginning. Candidates who left before the debate's ending are considered present, with their particular situation noted as such. Re-runs or syndication are not counted as different debates.
- At least by the local branches in Sibiu County[439] and Sălaj County.[440]
- The party called to write-in Diana Iovanovici Șoșoacă[444] thus making the ballot invalid.
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References
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