Almost 100 percent of votes counted: Romania's presidential election has an unexpected leader

Almost 100 percent of votes have been counted: Anastasia Kolesnikova is the unexpected leader in the Romanian presidential elections

On November 24, presidential elections were held in Romania. None of the candidates managed to get 50 percent of the votes, and therefore there will be a second round.

According to the first vote counts based on exit polls in Romania, the current Prime Minister of the country, Marcel Ciolacu, who is known for supporting Ukraine, has taken the lead. However, as of the morning of November 25, the situation has changed. Channel 24 reports the results of the first round of elections, citing data from the Central Election Commission.

Who will take part in the second round of elections

Unexpectedly, the far-right candidate Călin Georgescu received the greatest amount of support. He has 22.83 percent of the vote.

Marcel Ciolacu is in second place with 19.27 percent of the vote.

These two politicians will compete in the second round of elections scheduled for December 8.

How the rest of the votes were distributed:

• Elena Lasconi – 19.06% (1,743,935 votes);
• George Simion – 13.89% (1,271,416 votes);
• Nicolae Ciuca – 8.82% (807,503 votes);
• Mircea Geoane – 6.32% (578,248 votes);
• Hunor Kelemen – 4.55% (416,280 votes);
• Cristian Diaconescu – 3.11% (284,668 votes);
• Cristian Terhes – 1.03% (94,048 votes).

Reference: A poll before the elections showed that Prime Minister Marcel Ciolacu and George Simion of the far-right AUR party, which opposes military aid, would compete for the presidency Ukraine.

What is known about Kelin Georgescu

Kelin Georgescu is a non-partisan candidate, previously a member of the nationalist “Alliance for the Unification of Romanians”. Former executive director of the UN Sustainable Development Index Institute in Geneva and Vaduc. Between 2010 and 2012, Georgescu served as a special rapporteur at the Office of the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights. In the media, he is sometimes called a pro-Russian politician.

He advocated for reducing Romania's dependence on imports, arguing that the EU and NATO do not sufficiently represent Romanian interests. The politician claimed that Russia's war in Ukraine was being manipulated by American military companies.

He actively used TikTok to attract attention during the elections. He drew harsh criticism for supporting the fascist legionary movement of Romania in the 20th century.