Romania's ruling social democrats on course for most votes, far-right comes in second, preliminary results show
Romania’s ruling Social Democratic Party (PSD) received 22.5% of the votes during the Dec. 1 parliamentary elections, according to results from more than 99% polling stations published on Dec. 2.
The far-right Alliance for the Union of Romanians (AUR) came in second at 18.2%, followed by the co-ruling National Liberal Party (PNL) with 14.36% and the center-right Save Romania Union (USR) with 12.17%, results show.
Romania’s far-right AUR, campaigning with nationalist slogans, has doubled its results compared to the 2020 elections, reflecting general dissatisfaction with mainstream parties.
Their leader, George Simion, was banned from entering Ukraine in 2000 for "systematic anti-Ukrainian activities,” Ukraine’s security services said.
Two other nationalist parties — SOS Romania of pro-Russian MEP Diana Sosoaca and the Party of Young People (POT) — won 7.66% and 6.31% of the vote, respectively. The UDMR party, which represents Romania's Hungarian minority, also entered the parliament with 6.43% of the vote.
The governing PSD-PNL coalition has followed a pro-NATO, pro-Ukraine course under incumbent Social Democratic Prime Minister Marcel Ciolacu and outgoing President Klaus Iohannis. In October, Romania delivered a Patriot missile defense system to Ukraine.
Romania holds parliamentary and presidential elections in November and December 2024.
Earlier, in the first round of presidential elections, incumbent governing parties PSD and the liberal PNL failed to enter their candidates for the second round, which will be held on Dec. 8.
Instead, a largely unknown hard-right candidate and critic of NATO and Ukraine, Calin Georgescu, took the lead. He is expected to face USR's pro-EU candidate Elena Lasconi.
The outcome of the presidential election remains in doubt as the Constitutional Court decides later on Dec. 2 whether the first round's result should be annulled amid allegations of fraud and foreign interference.
Timothy Ash
