Pro-European Union Mayor of Bucharest, Nicușor Dan, won Romania’s presidential runoff on Sunday, defeating EU-skeptic George Simion, the leader of the nationalist Alliance for the Unity of Romanians (AUR).
According to official data released early Monday, Dan secured just over 54% of the vote, while Simion received a little more than 45%. Approximately one million ballots from Romanians living abroad have yet to be counted. While Simion is expected to win a majority of those votes, they are not expected to be sufficient to overcome Dan’s lead. However, the final margin may be closer than currently reported.
Simion led the first round of the election with 41% of the vote, compared to Dan’s 21%. For a time, Simion appeared poised to win the runoff, but public sentiment shifted following a series of televised debates.
Sunday’s vote reflected a broader pattern seen across Europe—a political contest between “pro-system” and “anti-system” forces. The election once again pitted pro-Brussels candidates against populist challengers seeking to assert national sovereignty over European integration.
Dan’s victory represents a significant win for Brussels, especially given Romania’s strategic role in the transatlantic alliance due to its proximity to Ukraine and the Black Sea. EU leaders are likely to see the result as a successful defense against growing populist momentum in Eastern Europe.
Romania’s presidential race, however, has been clouded by controversy. The original election, held in November, was annulled by the country’s Constitutional Court after anti-NATO and anti-EU candidate Călin Gregescu won. The court cited alleged Russian interference via TikTok as the reason for invalidating the results.
It was later revealed that the social media campaign had been orchestrated by another Romanian political party. Nevertheless, the government proceeded to open a criminal investigation into Gregescu, and the courts barred him from participating in the re-run of the election.
Simion emerged as Gregescu’s de facto successor, with Gregescu actively endorsing and campaigning on his behalf.
On Sunday, Telegram founder Pavel Durov claimed that in April, he was approached by Nicholas Lerner, the head of French intelligence, who allegedly requested that conservative accounts in Romania be banned ahead of the election.
Although Dan’s win is the latest in a string of victories for pro-EU forces, the lengths to which the establishment reportedly went to secure a favorable outcome—including annulling a legitimate election result and banning its winner—have raised concerns about the credibility of future elections within the bloc.