Tens of thousands of protesters gathered in Romania’s capital Saturday in the latest antigovernment demonstration by far-right groups after a top court canceled a presidential election in the European Union country last year.
Protesters converged in front of the government building in Bucharest, waving Romania’s tricolor flag and chanting slogans such as “Down with the Government” and “Thieves.” Many expressed support for Calin Georgescu, who emerged as the front-runner in December’s canceled election, and demanded they be resumed from the second round.
George Simion, the leader of the far-right Alliance for the Unity of Romanians, which organized the protest, told supporters Saturday: “We are united, we are strong. We are here because our vote was stolen. Because democracy was trampled on.”
Simion told reporters that the protest aimed to “restore democracy and free elections” and demanded the resignation of Prime Minister Marcel Ciolacu.
“We do not trust that the upcoming elections will be free and fair,” he said.
A no-confidence vote on Friday, which was backed by AUR and two other far-right opposition parties, failed to unseat Ciolacu’s pro-Western coalition government, which was formed after a Dec. 1 parliamentary election.
Election rerun scheduled for May 4
Romania has seen recurring protests after the Constitutional Court made the unprecedented move to annul the election two days ahead of the Dec. 8 runoff following Georgescu’s surprise first-round win. The far-right populist had polled in single digits and declared zero campaign spending. Allegations of electoral violations and Russian interference quickly emerged. Moscow has denied it meddled in Romania’s election.
On Wednesday, Romanian prosecutors launched a criminal investigation against Georgescu, accusing him of supporting fascist groups, “incitement to actions against the constitutional order,” and false declarations regarding electoral campaign financing and asset disclosures. Prosecutors have placed him under judicial control, according to his lawyers.
Georgescu, who has repeatedly denied any wrongdoing, attended Saturday’s protest where he told supporters that “the system has maliciously tried to divide us” and that “old and new cronies tried to block my candidacy.”
The first round of the rerun of the election is scheduled for May 4. If no candidate gets more than 50% of ballots, a runoff will follow on May 18.
It isn’t yet clear whether Georgescu will be able to participate in the new election.
