The farthest right can’t be right
30 November 2024
Who is Calin Georgescu? That was the question on the lips of 88% of the Romanian population after the results of the first round of presidential elections were published. Seemingly an independent candidate, he managed to get 22% of the votes,despite being ranked in sixth place in most opinion polls.
His campaign was done exclusively online, and according to Georgescu it was realised with zero funds. In his viral videos, he calls to the public with mystic/religion-infused speeches, about the unification and sovereignty of the Romanian people under the protection of god. In his winning speech, Georgescu proudly states “from today Romania is led again by god.” The National Broadcasting Agency is trying to investigate the abusive and unmarked use of TikTok bots in promoting Georgescu's campaign.
Georgescu was one of the founders of the far-right party Alliance for the Union of Romanians (AUR), but was excluded from their ranks once criminal charges were placed upon him for his public glorification of World War II's fascist Romanian leaders. Amongst his favourite nationalistic remarks, we can include the spreading of misinformation about the benefits received by Ukrainian refugees placed on Romanian territory. With that in mind, he happily aligned himself with Putin and Russia, stating that “Russian ‘wisdom’ is the only thing that could help the Romanian nation.” It is not a surprise that anti-NATO and anti-EU speeches have been prominent in his rhetoric.
Tensions in the country are on the rise, as the electoral bureau decided to recount the votes of last week’s elections. As the difference between the second liberal candidate Lasconi and the third place social democrat Ciolacu was only 2,700 votes, chances are the recount will lead to different candidates in the second round. As Romanians are voting this weekend for the parliamentary elections, they are still unsure if a second round for presidential elections will take place.
 | Alexandra Drugescu-Radulescu A fascist-lover, a pro-Russian, a climate change denier, and a conspiracy theorist who does not believe in the 1969 moon landing. This is who Romanians voted for, mostly as a sign of protest against the current political elite. But the philosophy ‘when unhappy, vote dumber’ is bound – history has shown us – to ricochet back into the faces of the populus. Political analysts are calling this a manifest vote against the parties that have been ruling the state since the 1989 revolution. The parties have become so embedded in the institutional structure of Romania that they started resembling a cartel. It is yet unclear if Russian interference in the elections via TikTok can be talked about, but one thing is clear: fear is roaming the streets of Romania. While young people are protesting in the streets of Bucharest, some are still debating who to vote for next week: Georgescu or liberal Elena Lasconi, whose main disadvantage in this case – believe it or not – is that she is a woman. This might be one of the biggest crossroads Romania has faced so far, having to choose between continuing down the European road or jumping straight into Russia's arms. |
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