Factbox-Who are the main contenders in Romania's presidential election re-run?
BUCHAREST (Reuters) - Romanians vote in the first round of a presidential election on Sunday, with a second round run-off expected to be held on May 18.
There are 11 candidates vying for the presidency, whose powers include oversight of foreign policy and defence spending. These are the main contenders:
GEORGE SIMION
The 38-year-old leader of the radical right Alliance for Uniting Romanians (AUR) leads in opinion polls.
He opposes military aid to Ukraine, is critical of the European Union's leadership and a supporter of U.S. President Donald Trump.
He has supported restoring Romania to its 1940 borders, which include territories now in Bulgaria, Moldova and Ukraine, and is banned from entering the latter two.
A conservative Christian, he supported a failed 2018 referendum to change Romania's constitution to prevent same-sex couples from ever being able to marry.
Election authorities are looking into his campaign funding after he reported zero funds spent on online promotion despite evidence of paid content on social media platforms. He is also under scrutiny for potentially breaching privacy rules after Romanian pensioners were sent a letter on his behalf.
CRIN ANTONESCU
The 65-year-old former leader of the ruling coalition Liberal Party became a lawmaker in 1992 and has held political positions throughout his career until he retired from politics a decade ago.
He is backed by the leftist Social Democrats (PSD), his Liberals and the ethnic Hungarian party which make up Romania's pro-western coalition government.
In 2012, alongside Victor Ponta, another presidential candidate who was then prime minister and PSD leader, Antonescu attempted to overthrow then centrist President Traian Basescu, which raised concerns over the rule of law in Brussels.
Antonescu briefly served as interim president but the impeachment referendum against Basescu ultimately failed.
After retiring from politics, Antonescu lived in Brussels with his wife Adina Valean, a member of the European Parliament who served as the EU's transport commissioner.
Antonescu supports increase defence spending and supporting Ukraine while remaining firmly anchored in the EU and NATO. He supports the introduction of civil unions for same-sex couples.
NICUSOR DAN
Dan, 55, is a two-term mayor of capital Bucharest running as an independent centrist on an "Honest Romania" ticket with a staunch pro-EU and NATO stance.
The French-educated mathematician turned to activism to protect heritage buildings in the capital Bucharest before entering politics. He is campaigning on an anti-corruption ticket, eliminating red tape and merit-based reform of public administration.
He has been criticised for his relationship with businessman Mihai Paun, a longtime collaborator. Paun has in the past praised Russian President Vladimir Putin on social media and has had business dealings in Belarus and Russia.
Dan supports increasing defence spending to 3.5% of economic output in stages by 2030, from just over 2% in 2024, and supports Ukraine.
VICTOR PONTA
Ponta, 52, is a former leftist prime minister whose politics have turned ultranationalist.
Ponta, who quit as prime minister in 2015 after a deadly nightclub fire, and whose first presidential bid in 2014 was thwarted by his government's bureaucratic hurdles to voting by Romanians abroad, has said he backs what he calls "radical change" taking place in the United States.
He said he would support increasing Romanian defence spending to over 3% of economic output in 2026.
He does not support the introduction of civil unions for same sex couples.
ELENA LASCONI
The 52-year-old mayor of the town of Campulung, in central Romania, Lasconi was the runner-up in the presidential election that was cancelled in December over accusations of Russian meddling in favour of the far-right frontrunner Calin Georgescu.
Lasconi has since lost support in opinion surveys. Executive members of her own party, the centre-right opposition Save Romania Union (USR), have withdrawn support for her in favour of Dan.
Lasconi believes in increasing defence spending and helping Ukraine. She has called the election cancellation a coup. She supports civil unions for same-sex couples, although she opposes legalizing marriage.
(Compiled by Luiza Ilie, Editing by Timothy Heritage)
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According to reports in German newspaper, Handlesblatt, senior Brussels negotiators are looking at whether to accept US tariffs of 10% across all EU exports into the US, in hope it will prevent higher duties on cars, drugs and electronics. The news, first reported by Handlesblatt, according to Reuters added that EU officials said the offer would come under certain conditions and would not be permanent. Handelsblatt reported that the EU is ready to cut tariffs on US-made vehicles and may ease technical and legal hurdles to make it easier for US manufacturers to sell their cars in Europe. Reuters reports: Read more here. As President Trump's tariff deadline looms, what will happen when the countdown ends on Liberation Day 2.0? Yahoo Finance's Washington Correspondent Ben Werschkul looks into Trump's plan of action: Read more here. Despite a trade truce being agreed between the US and China last week in London, a key area remains unresolved. 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The group will manage discussions across industry and the energy sector, a statement from the Industry Ministry for South Korea revealed on Monday. Reuters reports: Read more here. Canada will host world leaders from across the globe at the G7 summit this week in Kananaskis. Among the many goals for Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney: Demonstrate he can handle US President Donald Trump, the Financial Times reports, with one Canadian official characterizing the gathering as "preparing the red carpet for Godzilla." Read more here (premium) As leaders gather this week in Canada for the G7 summit, Israel's strike on Iran is sure to be a topic of discussion among the gathering. But as CNN reports, world trade and President Donald Trump's tariffs will also be top of mind: Read more here The Trump administration's 50% steel tariffs will soon apply to consumer appliances like refrigerators and dishwasher, CNN reports: Read more here A delegation of US lawmakers and other state officials will attend the Paris Airshow this week to shore up economic partnerships with the US's allies in aerospace and aviation, Reuters reports. The group, which includes about a dozen governors — Virginia Governor Glenn Youngkin and Arkansas Governor Sarah Huckabee Sanders among them — is expected to make the case for greater investments in US aerospace companies amid concerns the Trump administration will raise tariffs on aircraft, jet engines, and parts. Aerospace companies and airlines face 10% tariffs on imported planes and parts as part of President Trump's 'Liberation Day' tariffs, and the Commerce Department is looking into additional Section 232 imported goods, which could lead to higher tariffs for the industry. Read more here. In case you missed it, bank executives gathered at a Morgan Stanley conference this past week, where they shared their views on the path forward for tariffs. And as Yahoo Finance's David Hollerith noted, JPMorgan Chase (JPM) CEO Jamie Dimon sounded a little more optimistic about the effect tariffs may have on the US economy over the next several months. "Maybe in July, August, September, October, you'll start to see 'did it have an effect?'" Dimon said of tariffs. "My guess is it did, hopefully not dramatic. May just make the soft landing a little bit softer as opposed to the ship go down." Dimon also guessed that tariffs will cause inflation to rise and employment to "come down a little bit." Meanwhile, clients at Citigroup's (C) global investment bank are evaluating a baseline level of tariffs of between 10% and 20%, according to Viswas Raghavan, Citigroup's head of banking. Read more here. The summer travel season is underway, and many foreign visitors are steering clear of the US amid ongoing trade tensions. Yahoo Finance's Ines Ferré reports: Read more here. Canada's trade-focused industries are starting to slow down as a result of US President Trump's tariffs. Bloomberg News reports: Read more here. The EU's goods trade surplus with the US expanded in April, despite US tariffs, according to data released on Friday. Reuters reports: Read more here. US chip curbs on China have forced Nvidia to exclude the Chinese market from its revenue and profit forecasts, Nvidia (NVDA) CEO Jenson Huang told CNN on Thursday. CNN reports: Read more here. On a company earnings call Thursday, RH (RH) CEO Gary Friedman shared a frank account of how the furniture retailer navigated a "chaotic and unpredictable" quarter due to tariffs, market volatility, and a weak housing market. "Everywhere got rocked from the reciprocal tariff announcements," Friedman said. "When the market went down, our business went down. You had to pull forward, give back. It's like a noisy, noisy time right now to run your business." Friedman emphasized that President Trump's "Liberation Day" announcement, which took tariffs on China to 54% and then to over 100%, rattled the supply chain, as did the subsequent pause on most tariffs. "What happened when the reciprocal tariffs hit, we stopped shipments," the CEO said. "People stopped producing. ... I mean, it created disruption for several weeks in the supply chain, and when you try to ramp back up quickly in a chaotic time like that, things are just — things are late. Things get backed up." RH expects the tariff disruption will negatively impact Q2 revenues by 6 points but that revenue will recover in the second half of the year. The company continues to shift sourcing out of China and said it projects 52% of its upholstered furniture will be made in the US and 21% will be produced in Italy by the end of the year. Despite the noisy environment, RH reported an unexpected profit in Q1, sending shares 19% higher in premarket trading on Friday. Friedman added that RH's vendor partners absorbed a "meaningful portion" of the tariffs and that the trade wars may allow the company to take share from smaller competitors. "I mean there's a lot of people going bankrupt," he said. "A lot of the ankle-biter businesses, the little online things, ... they can't raise capital. ... A lot of them are blowing up. They're going away." "The businesses that I think don't make it through the rest of this year, they don't have the scale to deal with the tariffs," he continued. "They don't have the leverage. They don't have the strategic flexibility. So you want to position yourself for the other side. The other side's where all the upside is." Japan's trade negotiator, Ryosei Akazawa said he expects a deal with the US to hopefully prevent Toyko from getting higher auto tariffs, even if President Trump increases them against other nations. Bloomberg News reports: Read more here. According to reports in German newspaper, Handlesblatt, senior Brussels negotiators are looking at whether to accept US tariffs of 10% across all EU exports into the US, in hope it will prevent higher duties on cars, drugs and electronics. The news, first reported by Handlesblatt, according to Reuters added that EU officials said the offer would come under certain conditions and would not be permanent. Handelsblatt reported that the EU is ready to cut tariffs on US-made vehicles and may ease technical and legal hurdles to make it easier for US manufacturers to sell their cars in Europe. Reuters reports: Read more here. As President Trump's tariff deadline looms, what will happen when the countdown ends on Liberation Day 2.0? Yahoo Finance's Washington Correspondent Ben Werschkul looks into Trump's plan of action: Read more here. Despite a trade truce being agreed between the US and China last week in London, a key area remains unresolved. Export restrictions tied to national security are still being discussed and Beijing has not committed to grant export clearance for some specialized rare earth magnets, according to two sources. Reuters reports: Read more here. Reuters reports: Read more here. China reported mixed economic performance for May on Monday, as retail sales jumped while factory output slowed due to higher US tariffs. AP reports: Read more here. Thailand's commerce minister has expressed confidence that he will be able to negotiate tariffs as low as 10% with the US. Reuters reports: Read more here. Reuters reports: Read more here. As part of tariff negotiations, the US has requested that Vietnam reduce the use of Chinese tech devices that are assembled in the country before exporting to America, according to several people familiar with the matter. Reuters reports: Read more here. South Korea has launched a task force to help handle tariff and non-tariff negotiations with the US. The group will manage discussions across industry and the energy sector, a statement from the Industry Ministry for South Korea revealed on Monday. Reuters reports: Read more here. Canada will host world leaders from across the globe at the G7 summit this week in Kananaskis. Among the many goals for Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney: Demonstrate he can handle US President Donald Trump, the Financial Times reports, with one Canadian official characterizing the gathering as "preparing the red carpet for Godzilla." Read more here (premium) As leaders gather this week in Canada for the G7 summit, Israel's strike on Iran is sure to be a topic of discussion among the gathering. But as CNN reports, world trade and President Donald Trump's tariffs will also be top of mind: Read more here The Trump administration's 50% steel tariffs will soon apply to consumer appliances like refrigerators and dishwasher, CNN reports: Read more here A delegation of US lawmakers and other state officials will attend the Paris Airshow this week to shore up economic partnerships with the US's allies in aerospace and aviation, Reuters reports. The group, which includes about a dozen governors — Virginia Governor Glenn Youngkin and Arkansas Governor Sarah Huckabee Sanders among them — is expected to make the case for greater investments in US aerospace companies amid concerns the Trump administration will raise tariffs on aircraft, jet engines, and parts. Aerospace companies and airlines face 10% tariffs on imported planes and parts as part of President Trump's 'Liberation Day' tariffs, and the Commerce Department is looking into additional Section 232 imported goods, which could lead to higher tariffs for the industry. Read more here. In case you missed it, bank executives gathered at a Morgan Stanley conference this past week, where they shared their views on the path forward for tariffs. And as Yahoo Finance's David Hollerith noted, JPMorgan Chase (JPM) CEO Jamie Dimon sounded a little more optimistic about the effect tariffs may have on the US economy over the next several months. "Maybe in July, August, September, October, you'll start to see 'did it have an effect?'" Dimon said of tariffs. "My guess is it did, hopefully not dramatic. May just make the soft landing a little bit softer as opposed to the ship go down." Dimon also guessed that tariffs will cause inflation to rise and employment to "come down a little bit." Meanwhile, clients at Citigroup's (C) global investment bank are evaluating a baseline level of tariffs of between 10% and 20%, according to Viswas Raghavan, Citigroup's head of banking. Read more here. The summer travel season is underway, and many foreign visitors are steering clear of the US amid ongoing trade tensions. Yahoo Finance's Ines Ferré reports: Read more here. Canada's trade-focused industries are starting to slow down as a result of US President Trump's tariffs. Bloomberg News reports: Read more here. The EU's goods trade surplus with the US expanded in April, despite US tariffs, according to data released on Friday. Reuters reports: Read more here. US chip curbs on China have forced Nvidia to exclude the Chinese market from its revenue and profit forecasts, Nvidia (NVDA) CEO Jenson Huang told CNN on Thursday. CNN reports: Read more here. On a company earnings call Thursday, RH (RH) CEO Gary Friedman shared a frank account of how the furniture retailer navigated a "chaotic and unpredictable" quarter due to tariffs, market volatility, and a weak housing market. "Everywhere got rocked from the reciprocal tariff announcements," Friedman said. "When the market went down, our business went down. You had to pull forward, give back. It's like a noisy, noisy time right now to run your business." Friedman emphasized that President Trump's "Liberation Day" announcement, which took tariffs on China to 54% and then to over 100%, rattled the supply chain, as did the subsequent pause on most tariffs. "What happened when the reciprocal tariffs hit, we stopped shipments," the CEO said. "People stopped producing. ... I mean, it created disruption for several weeks in the supply chain, and when you try to ramp back up quickly in a chaotic time like that, things are just — things are late. Things get backed up." RH expects the tariff disruption will negatively impact Q2 revenues by 6 points but that revenue will recover in the second half of the year. The company continues to shift sourcing out of China and said it projects 52% of its upholstered furniture will be made in the US and 21% will be produced in Italy by the end of the year. Despite the noisy environment, RH reported an unexpected profit in Q1, sending shares 19% higher in premarket trading on Friday. Friedman added that RH's vendor partners absorbed a "meaningful portion" of the tariffs and that the trade wars may allow the company to take share from smaller competitors. "I mean there's a lot of people going bankrupt," he said. "A lot of the ankle-biter businesses, the little online things, ... they can't raise capital. ... A lot of them are blowing up. They're going away." "The businesses that I think don't make it through the rest of this year, they don't have the scale to deal with the tariffs," he continued. "They don't have the leverage. They don't have the strategic flexibility. So you want to position yourself for the other side. The other side's where all the upside is." Japan's trade negotiator, Ryosei Akazawa said he expects a deal with the US to hopefully prevent Toyko from getting higher auto tariffs, even if President Trump increases them against other nations. Bloomberg News reports: Read more here. Sign in to access your portfolio
