In a dramatic twist within Romania’s political arena, Calin Georgescu, a largely unheralded right-wing populist, jolted the nation in November by securing the top spot in the first round of the presidential election. This unexpected triumph allowed him to advance to a runoff against Elena Lasconi from the progressive Save Romania Union party, leaving analysts puzzled as pre-election surveys had not predicted his success. This led to the judiciary taking the extraordinary step of nullifying the election due to reports of electoral misconduct and possible Russian meddling.
Prosecutors in Romania have now launched a criminal probe targeting Georgescu for alleged campaign finance misdeeds, connections to fascist groups, and further charges. The rescheduled elections are slated for May, and uncertainty looms over Georgescu’s eligibility to run.
Born in Bucharest in 1962, Georgescu holds academic credentials in pedology—a branch of soil science—and held various roles in Romania’s environment ministry during the 1990s. His career includes representing Romania on the United Nations Environment Program’s national committee from 1999 to 2012. Initially associated with the far-right Alliance for the Unity of Romanians (AUR), he exited in 2022 amidst internal conflicts, with accusations of harboring pro-Russian sympathies and NATO criticisms.
Georgescu is an advocate for the Romanian Orthodox Church and has attracted controversy with statements lauding historical Romanian fascists and nationalists as heroes. Past remarks that could be perceived as pro-Russian, including admiration for President Vladimir Putin, have added to his contentious public image.
Georgescu’s leap in popularity is attributed by many to his impactful presence on TikTok, where he has amassed 4.3 million likes and 679,000 followers. Expert Forum, a Bucharest-based think tank, noted a rapid increase in his TikTok viewership, a phenomenon coinciding suspiciously with his surprising polling outcomes.
His content on social media has revolved around themes of peace, particularly advocating for Romania to cease supporting Ukraine to avoid entanglement in conflict. Following his success in the initial voting round, a TikTok profile dedicated to his content, with 1.7 million likes, seemed to vanish. The account had featured posts of Georgescu in various activities, such as attending church and speaking on podcasts.
The annulment of the election has made Georgescu a symbol within far-right circles, garnering backing from figures like Vice President JD Vance and entrepreneur Elon Musk, who have both criticized Romania’s decision to void the election results. Musk’s post to his vast audience on X, the platform formerly known as Twitter, highlighted his disapproval.
Vance, speaking at the Munich Security Conference, criticized Romania’s judicial stance, blaming it on superficial intelligence interpretations and external pressures, hinting at the fragility of Romania’s democratic fabric if foreign digital ads could influence it.
Georgescu’s political positions champion local agriculture, reducing dependency on imports, and enhancing self-sufficiency in energy and food production for Romania. His vision includes a distribution model aimed at fostering “Truth, Freedom, and Sovereignty” as national cornerstones. While skeptical of both NATO and the EU’s roles, he assures that these alliances are beneficial as long as they respect Romania’s sovereignty.
Openly supporting Donald Trump, Georgescu aligns himself with the former U.S. president’s nationalistic and populist ideologies, expressing a commitment to prioritize Romania in a manner akin to Trump’s “America First” policy.
