Nothing in this world is certain, who would have thought that on May 18th, during the Romanian presidential election, pro-European Bucharest Mayor Nicosu Dan was elected president!

Because his support rate in the first round was only half of far-right George Simion's, whose support rate was 41% - with three candidates, 41% was very high, everyone thought Romania was doomed to fall into the hands of the far right.

But in the second round of elections, George Simion only got 46% of the votes, while Nicosu Dan received 54%, surpassing him significantly.

Once again, the "Trump factor" played a role - George Simion, 38 years old, a Trump enthusiast, often wearing the "Make America Great Again" Trump hat, known as the "Romanian Trump".

Romania is now an important strategic pillar of NATO and a loyal member of the EU, with a population of 19 million, bordering Ukraine. Since Russia's invasion of Ukraine in 2022, Romania has provided solid support for Ukraine as its logistics base.

Thus, Romania's presidential election not only attracts attention across Europe but also draws close international scrutiny - Brussels supports the pro-European candidate, while Washington openly supports the far-right candidate. Of course, the EU cannot publicly support but can only support Romania's Supreme Court in investigating the impact of social media on the election, whereas Washington, Vance, Musk, and others openly support the far-right.

George Simion, once a football hooligan in his youth, exploited public dissatisfaction with economic difficulties during his campaign, calling for the expulsion of "politicians like thieves in Brussels", and since Romania remains one of the poorest countries in the EU, he claimed that if elected, he would make Romania "the Romania of the Romanian people," no longer being a "second-class citizen of the EU," opposing "unfairness," and eliminating the "humiliation suffered by our brothers and sisters," ensuring that "our future is entirely decided and serves Romanians."

This critic of the "absurd policies of the EU" further promised that, upon election, he would immediately stop military aid to Ukraine and hoped to demand "economic compensation" for the assistance Romania had provided to Ukraine so far. He also advocated establishing a "true Christian state." Even before winning, he had designated someone else from the far-right, Gheorghecsu, who had won last year but had his election qualifications revoked, to be appointed as prime minister. In short, as the election approached, he firmly believed he would become the "next president of Romania" unless there were "large-scale frauds."

On the other hand, 55-year-old mathematician and Bucharest Mayor Nicosu Dan said that the election on November 24th gave him an unprecedented "shock," which prompted him to run for office.

He realized that the rise of the far-right was largely due to people's opposition to the "corruption" and "arrogance" of the political class that had been in power since the 1989 political upheaval. Therefore, he ran for office with his favorite theme of "honesty," positioning himself as a "change" candidate.

During his campaign, he promised to combat corruption, continue aiding Ukraine, and firmly anchor Romania within the EU.

So, two options are presented: maintaining the pro-European route and supporting Kyiv, or turning toward the far-right?

Romanians face a serious choice.

Nearing the vote, many Romanians mobilized, hoping to reverse the situation in this election, as it is crucial for the European future of this neighboring country of Ukraine.

In Bucharest, the capital of Romania, supporters of Dan shouted "Russia, don't forget, Romania is not yours."

The final results showed that the voter turnout was nearly 65%, compared to only 53% in the first round of voting. According to the voting results, Romanians chose to defend democracy and the EU, continuing aid to Ukraine.

Romanian political scientist Serchu-Miscov: "This mobilization of Romanians is almost unprecedented, characterized by a surge in numbers of democracy defenders," "Never has an election been so decisive and produced such obvious geopolitical impacts."

Supporters of Dan gathered outside the campaign headquarters in central Bucharest to celebrate his victory.

"This election is crucial for the future of Europe," said 19-year-old Ilinca Cibotaru. "It is very beneficial for democracy and the younger generation... and for our parents and grandparents who resisted the current system in 1989."

Of course, this is a strong result of Trump's influence on European politics, so powerful that even the Trump group may find it hard to catch their breath.

Of course, for President Dan, the economy is key, hoping the EU will deliver, not letting down the choice of the Romanians.

Original source: https://www.toutiao.com/article/1832530422425612/

Disclaimer: This article solely represents the author's personal views.