A far-right candidate is projected to win the first round of Romania’s presidential election rerun in May, a survey shows. However, centrist Bucharest mayor Nicusor Dan is expected to prevail in the final round, keeping Romania on its pro-European course despite rising nationalist rhetoric.
A far-right candidate is seen leading in the first round of Romania's presidential election rerun in May, according to a survey on Monday, in a vote that will determine whether Bucharest keeps to its pro-European course of recent years.
However, the survey by AtlasIntel also showed the centrist mayor of Bucharest, Nicusor Dan, was likely to defeat whichever of two far-right candidates ends up contesting the election in the second and decisive round.
NATO and EU member Romania is due to repeat its two-round presidential election on May 4 and 18 after the top court voided the original vote in December amid accusations of Russian meddling in favour of far-right candidate Calin Georgescu, who had been leading in the polls.
Moscow denied meddling in the vote.
After Georgescu's candidacy for the rerun was blocked by the top court, both George Simion and Anamaria Gavrila, prominent figures on Romania's hard right, stepped forward, with an agreement that one would stand aside if both candidacies were approved.
The Central Electoral Bureau (CEB) has now accepted both candidacies but there is as yet no decision on who will step aside.
Simion, leader of Romania's second-largest party, the Alliance of Uniting Romanians (AUR)and Gavrila, leader of the Young People Party (POT), were supporters of Georgescu and have been stoking up nationalist fervor with their fiery rhetoric.
The AtlasIntel survey, conducted from March 13-15 and published on Monday on the news website hotnews.ro, showed that either Simion or Gavrila would secure most votes in the first round.
Simion would secure 30.4% of the vote in the first round if he was the far-right candidate, while Gavrila would get 30.2% if she ran, according to the survey.
However, Bucharest mayor Dan, running as an independent, would likely win the decisive second round due to his broad appeal across various voter demographics, according to the survey, though many of those canvassed remained undecided.
Romania's hard-right parties generally take a pro-Russian line in foreign policy and oppose providing military aid to neighbouring Ukraine, a stance that would put Bucharest at odds with the European Union and NATO if either Simion or Gavrila became president.
Germany’s constitutional court has rejected last-minute legal challenges to a €500 billion ($546 billion) infrastructure fund proposed by conservative leader Friedrich Merz.
A deal that could reshape Ukraine’s borders—Donald Trump is pushing for a peace agreement with Vladimir Putin, suggesting land concessions and nuclear plant control may be on the table.
Evan Feinman, the former director of the $42.5 billion Broadband Equity, Access, and Deployment (BEAD) Program, has departed his role amid concerns over a potential policy shift that could replace high-speed fiber connections with slower, more expensive satellite internet services.
UK finance minister Rachel Reeves expressed satisfaction on Monday with the steps taken by the country’s top financial regulators to promote economic growth. The government’s push to reduce red tape includes cutting some watchdogs, as they aim to accelerate a sluggish economy.
Public support for Japanese Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba has dropped to a record low after he handed out gift vouchers to ruling party lawmakers, an Asahi newspaper poll showed on Monday. Approval fell 14 percentage points to 26%, the lowest since he took office last October.
EU ministers vowed on Monday to explore ways to save Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty (RFE/RL) after U.S. President Donald Trump cut its funding, but warned that replacing U.S. support would not be easy.
International donors at a European Union-led conference in Brussels pledged €5.8 billion ($6.3 billion) on Monday to support Syria’s new authorities, who are grappling with humanitarian and security crises following the fall of Bashar al-Assad.
A U.S. spy drone withdrew from near Iranian airspace after being intercepted by Iranian F-14 fighter jets and reconnaissance drones, Iran’s Nournews reported on Monday, citing the country's Army Air Force.
Germany’s constitutional court has rejected last-minute legal challenges to a €500 billion ($546 billion) infrastructure fund proposed by conservative leader Friedrich Merz.
A deal that could reshape Ukraine’s borders—Donald Trump is pushing for a peace agreement with Vladimir Putin, suggesting land concessions and nuclear plant control may be on the table.
The inside of a Herculaneum delicate & ancient scroll, unseen for nearly 2,000 years, has been revealed using Artificial Intelligence.
World leaders welcomed the 30-day ceasefire proposal that Ukraine has agreed to, calling it a step toward ending the conflict with Russia.
Regarding the Armenia-Azerbaijan process, we cannot forget the years of occupation, and we will not forget them, President Ilham Aliyev said in his speech at the opening ceremony of the 12th Global Baku Forum.
President Donald Trump has vowed to respond to the European Union's counter-tariffs, escalating tensions over the U.S. steel and aluminum duties that have sparked a trade dispute between the two economic powers.
In Tuesday’s closely watched parliamentary election, Greenland’s pro-business opposition Demokraatit party took a commanding lead after over 90% of the ballots were counted.
EU ministers vowed on Monday to explore ways to save Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty (RFE/RL) after U.S. President Donald Trump cut its funding, but warned that replacing U.S. support would not be easy.
International donors at a European Union-led conference in Brussels pledged €5.8 billion ($6.3 billion) on Monday to support Syria’s new authorities, who are grappling with humanitarian and security crises following the fall of Bashar al-Assad.
A U.S. spy drone withdrew from near Iranian airspace after being intercepted by Iranian F-14 fighter jets and reconnaissance drones, Iran’s Nournews reported on Monday, citing the country's Army Air Force.
Germany’s constitutional court has rejected last-minute legal challenges to a €500 billion ($546 billion) infrastructure fund proposed by conservative leader Friedrich Merz.
A deal that could reshape Ukraine’s borders—Donald Trump is pushing for a peace agreement with Vladimir Putin, suggesting land concessions and nuclear plant control may be on the table.
EU ministers vowed on Monday to explore ways to save Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty (RFE/RL) after U.S. President Donald Trump cut its funding, but warned that replacing U.S. support would not be easy.
International donors at a European Union-led conference in Brussels pledged €5.8 billion ($6.3 billion) on Monday to support Syria’s new authorities, who are grappling with humanitarian and security crises following the fall of Bashar al-Assad.
A U.S. spy drone withdrew from near Iranian airspace after being intercepted by Iranian F-14 fighter jets and reconnaissance drones, Iran’s Nournews reported on Monday, citing the country's Army Air Force.
Germany’s constitutional court has rejected last-minute legal challenges to a €500 billion ($546 billion) infrastructure fund proposed by conservative leader Friedrich Merz.
A deal that could reshape Ukraine’s borders—Donald Trump is pushing for a peace agreement with Vladimir Putin, suggesting land concessions and nuclear plant control may be on the table.
You can download the AnewZ application from Play Store and the App Store.
What is your opinion on this topic?
Leave the first comment