Romania’s highest court, on Thursday, 6 December 2024, annulled the results of the first round of the presidential election, ordering a rerun following allegations that Russia orchestrated a coordinated campaign to support the far-right candidate who emerged as the frontrunner.
The Constitutional Court’s final ruling came after President Klaus Iohannis declassified intelligence this week, claiming that Romania had been the target of “aggressive hybrid Russian attacks” during the election period. The alleged campaign involved thousands of social media accounts promoting the far-right populist Calin Georgescu across platforms such as TikTok and Telegram.
The court’s ruling stated it would “annul the entire electoral process for the election of the President of Romania… to ensure the correctness and legality of the electoral process.”
Georgescu, a pro-Russian candidate advocating for Romania to end its support for Ukraine amid Russia’s invasion, had unexpectedly emerged as the frontrunner in the first-round vote on 24 November. Despite being a political outsider with no campaign spending, he led the field. He was scheduled to face pro-European Union centrist Elena Lasconi of the Save Romania Union party in a run-off on Sunday, with voting already underway at polling stations abroad.
Georgescu described the court’s decision as a “coup,” while Lasconi condemned it as “illegal, amoral, and crushing the very essence of democracy: voting.”
George Simion, leader of the opposition hard-right Alliance for Uniting Romanians (AUR), also denounced the ruling as a “coup d’état” but urged people not to take to the streets.
“Nine politically appointed judges, scared that a candidate outside the system had a real chance to become Romania’s president, decided to annul the will of the Romanian people,” Simion stated.
Prime Minister Marcel Ciolacu, however, voiced his support for the court’s decision, calling it “the only correct decision” following the release of declassified documents indicating alleged Russian interference.
“The presidential elections must be held again,” Ciolacu posted on Facebook. “At the same time, investigations must uncover who is responsible for the massive attempt to influence the outcome of the presidential election.”
The intelligence files released on Wednesday were from the Romanian Intelligence Service, the Foreign Intelligence Service, the Special Telecommunication Service, and the Ministry of Internal Affairs.
Following the release, the Constitutional Court received several legal complaints urging it to annul the first-round vote.
A new date will now be set for the rerun of the first round.
“The electoral process to elect Romania’s president will be fully rerun, and the government will set a new date and … calendar for the necessary steps,” the Constitutional Court confirmed.
Romanian President Klaus Iohannis, whose term ends on 21 December, said on Friday that he would remain in office until a new president is elected.
Meanwhile, Romania’s anti-organised crime prosecuting unit, DIICOT, announced it was launching an investigation into Georgescu’s campaign after analysing the declassified documents.
“Prosecutors are investigating potential crimes related to illegal operations with computer devices or programmes, attempted disruption of computer systems, and illegal access to a computer system,” the unit stated.
While the president’s role is largely ceremonial in Romania, the head of state holds significant moral authority and influence over the country’s foreign policy. The president also designates the prime minister, a key role following last weekend’s legislative elections, which resulted in a fragmented parliament.
The pro-European Social Democrats emerged as the victors, but far-right parties made significant gains, collectively securing a third of the vote.
