On Sunday, several dozen thousand people marched through the capital of Romania, Bucharest, demanding a second round of the presidential elections. The constitutional court invalidated the elections when the pro-Russian candidate Calin Georgescu won the first round on November 24 last year.
– We are protesting against the coup of December 6 and demanding a return to democracy by resuming the elections from the second round – said George Simion, leader of the Alliance for the Unification of Romanians (AUR) party, which organized the protest. – The protests will continue until all our demands are met, he announced. The police estimated the number of participants at 20,000, but according to the organizers, 100,000 people could have taken part in the march.
Protests in Romania before the repeat presidential electionsRTRS
Protest in Romania. “We want to see the evidence.”
Participants in Sunday's demonstration chanted “Freedom!” and “Bring back the second round!” Some protesters carried portraits of Georgescu or Orthodox icons, while street vendors sold flags and vuvuzelas.
– Our electoral law has been violated – said Bogdan Danila, a 43-year-old truck driver. – Iohannis was in power for 10 years and did nothing for the people, and the parties betrayed us, they are all corrupt. We want something different, he added.
“The authorities must say why they canceled the elections, we want to see the evidence,” said Cornelia, a 57-year-old economist draped in a Romanian flag who declined to give her surname. “They will impose a leader on us, just like in the old days,” she said.
He has extreme views and is a Putin supporter. Calin Georgescu won the first round of the presidential elections in RomaniaKatarzyna Sławińska/Fakty TVN
It is unclear whether Georgescu, who opposes Romanian support for Ukraine in her fight against aggression Russiahe will be able to run for president again
The court invalidated the presidential elections
On December 6, in a move that polarized voters, Romania's constitutional court invalidated the presidential elections, two days before the second round, and ordered a repeat of the entire electoral process. He made this decision based on documents showing that the campaign of Georgescu – a politician previously unknown to the wider public – was the result of manipulation that could have been organized or supported from outside the country. The court ordered the elections to be repeated in their entirety.
The pro-European government coalition has not yet approved the electoral calendar, but party leaders have agreed to hold two rounds of elections on May 4 and 18. Iohannis, whose term expired on December 21, will remain in office until his successor is elected.
Main photo source: RTRS