Georgescu gets the ban hammer

Candidate Călin Georgescu of Romania at a protest.

Romania’s right-wing presidential candidate Călin Georgescu has been barred from running in the country’s election in May 2025. The Central Electoral Bureau claims the receipt of many complaints as to his extremism, and accuses him of having breached democratic rules.

This comes in the midst of a series of controversies surrounding the elections in the eastern European country, which includes the annulment of the December 2024 election results—  Georgescu claimed 22% of the vote, and would have advanced to the run-off round alongside centre-right USR candidate Elena Lasconi. The annulment was as a direct result of supposed Russian interference in the country, which election officials have attributed to swaying the vote significantly.

Georgescu’s rise to fame has been described as uncharacteristic— his methods of fame are new to the country. Being primarily a famous internet celebrity on short-form media platforms such as TikTok, most of his campaigns have been accused of supporting pro-Russia rhetoric. His detractors claim that he is supported by fascist political groups; and at one point, he was seen performing a Nazi salute after leaving a courthouse.

Many right wing politicians all over the world have expressed opposition to the ban, suggesting that the process is undemocratic. Matteo Salvini, Italy’s Deputy Prime Minister, declared that Romanians were robbed of their right to vote as a direct result of the ban, and that a serious theft of democracy was actively taking place.

The future of the far right in Romania is now up in the air. A replacement far-right candidate has not been named, given that Georgescu ran independently of a political party. It is also yet to be seen if a new candidate can achieve Georgescu’s same level of popularity, given his surprising rise to fame. Only time will tell if his successor will be able to reach a fraction of his popularity

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