Independent candidate Călin Georgescu and incumbent Prime Minister Marcel Ciolacu will face off in a runoff for the presidency of Romania, according to the Permanent Electoral Authority, which released results from nearly 85% of polling stations. The candidates’ results are close but diverge significantly from exit poll projections. The leader of a far-right party accused the poll of being „toxically rigged.”
The Romanian Permanent Electoral Authority (AEP) announced that after counting votes from 84.26% of polling stations, independent candidate Călin Georgescu leads the first round with 22.06%. In second place is current Prime Minister Marcel Ciolacu, representing the Social Democratic Party, with 21.88%. Elena Lasconi, chairwoman of the center-right Save Romania Union (USR), ranks third with 15.44%, while George Simion, leader of the radical-right AUR party, came in fourth with 14.8%.
Earlier, exit poll results released at 7:00 PM, two hours before polling stations closed, ranked the candidates differently: Ciolacu (25%), Lasconi (18%), Georgescu (16%), and Simion (15%).
The exit poll did not account for votes from the diaspora, meaning the final results could differ from the initial data, especially given the narrow margins between candidates in second through fourth place. George Simion, speaking at his campaign headquarters in central Bucharest, rejected the exit poll results, claiming they were „toxically rigged.” He urged his supporters to wait for the official election results.
Elena Lasconi thanked her voters, stating that „hope lives in Romania.” However, she emphasized the closeness of the results, adding, „We’ll celebrate tomorrow.”
