Latest news with #RomaniaElections
New York Times
3 hours ago
- Politics
- New York Times
TikTok Bots, MAGA Outrage and the Very Online Fight for Romania's Future
Early last December, Adrian Thiess, a well-connected political fixer in Romania, sent an urgent text message to Brad Parscale, the digital media strategist who had been working off and on for Donald J. Trump since 2012. Thiess and Parscale bonded in 2019, Thiess told me, when Parscale was managing Trump's re-election campaign. Thiess had paid Parscale to speak at a conference in Bucharest called 'Let's Make Political Marketing Great Again' — as it happened, the day before Robert S. Mueller III, then serving as a special counsel, submitted his report about Trump's dealings with Russia. The pair hit it off, both feeling the Russian accusations were a hoax. In the years since, Thiess had parlayed his friendship with Parscale into an entree into Trump's inner circle, even inviting the president's son, Donald Trump Jr., to Bucharest for his own paid talk. But it wasn't a speaking gig that was on Thiess's mind that night — he wanted to sound an alarm. 'Have you seen what's happening in Romania?' Thiess asked. Thiess was referring to the Romanian presidential election, specifically to a candidate named Calin Georgescu. Georgescu was a 62-year-old agronomist who had turned to nationalist politics, starting out as a fringe candidate who claimed on television that electronic chips were planted in soft drinks. Georgescu also professed a love for Robert F. Kennedy Jr., for whose manifesto attacking Dr. Anthony J. Fauci he penned an introduction in its Romanian edition. He made several promotional TikTok videos of himself that appeared to be inspired by Vladimir V. Putin's flamboyantly macho campaign imagery — in which Georgescu was sometimes on horseback, sometimes doing judo. The iconography was striking because Putin was extremely unpopular in Romania, a NATO member with an expanding air base on the Black Sea whose importance has grown since the war in Ukraine began. Georgescu, however, railed against NATO, which he said was dragging the country into World War III, while hailing Putin as a 'patriot and a leader.' What's more, Georgescu said he had spent no money on his campaign, and he didn't throw a lot of big outdoor rallies like his competitors. So it came as a big surprise when, after the first round of voting in November, Georgescu won — beating all five top candidates and sending him to a runoff that would decide the election. Want all of The Times? Subscribe.
Russia Today
24-05-2025
- Politics
- Russia Today
Paris arrested Telegram founder to meddle in Romanian election — Moscow
Russian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova has accused French President Emmanuel Macron of detaining Telegram founder Pavel Durov for the purpose of interfering with the electoral processes in Romania. The accusation comes shortly after Durov claimed that French authorities had enquired with him regarding the issue. 'It turns out that Macron had Durov arrested not even to address internal issues with the messenger using such barbaric methods, but to influence the elections in Romania, realizing that the candidate from the liberal dictatorship wouldn't be able to win under any legal circumstances,' Zakharova wrote on Telegram. On Saturday, Durov said, citing Romanian journalist Marius Tuca, that Nicolas Lerner, the head of France's foreign intelligence agency, the DGSE, had visited the country just two days before the vote. Earlier this month, Durov revealed that Lerner had asked him to censor conservative voices on the social media platform during the election campaign in Romania. The agency has publicly denied the allegation. Durov in turn accused French authorities of deflecting criticism by linking him to unrelated criminal investigations involving users of his platform. Durov was arrested in France last August and charged with complicity in crimes allegedly carried out by Telegram users. The Russian-born entrepreneur, whose company is headquartered in Dubai, was ultimately released on €5 million ($5.46 million) bail and allowed to leave the country in mid-March. Romania's Constitutional Court promptly annulled the results of the first round of the presidential election carried out in November 2024, alleging that independent right-wing candidate Calin Georgescu had secured an unexpected lead with the help of Russian interference. Georgescu was disqualified from the re-run. Last Sunday, the conservative EU critic George Simion lost a run-off vote against pro-Brussels Bucharest Mayor Nicusor Dan by a single-digit margin. Simion challenged the results on Tuesday, alleging 'external interferences by state and non-state actors,' but the nation's Constitutional Court unanimously rejected the petition. Following Simion's petition, Durov offered to testify before the Romanian authorities about the interactions with French officials, saying he would do so 'if it helps Romanian democracy.' Ahead of the second round of voting, Romania's Foreign Ministry alleged that Moscow was attempting to influence the outcome. The Kremlin ridiculed the allegations, comparing the process with a mess and stating that it shouldn't even count as a proper vote.
Reuters
21-05-2025
- Politics
- Reuters
Romanian hard-right presidential candidate challenges election defeat
May 21 (Reuters) - Romania's defeated hard-right presidential contender George Simion said late on Tuesday that he would challenge the ballot's result, alleging interference by France and Moldova, after a centrist victory was met with relief by many European leaders. Centrist Bucharest mayor Nicusor Dan recovered ground to win the country's presidential election run-off on Sunday, securing about 54% of ballots cast against 46% for Simion, who had pledged to put Romania on a path inspired by U.S. President Donald Trump's politics. Simion had earlier conceded defeat, after initially saying he won. But late on Tuesday he said in a post on X: "I officially ask Constitutional Court TO ANNUL Romanian presidential elections." European Union and NATO member Romania was plunged into a constitutional crisis in December when its top court annulled an ongoing presidential election that another hard-right candidate was on track to win, citing suspicions of Russian meddling. Moscow denied the allegations. In his X post Simion said he was challenging this month's result, "For the very reasons December elections were annulled: EXTERNAL INTERFERENCES by state and non-state actors." He added that "Neither France, nor Moldova, nor anyone else has the right to interfere in the elections of another state." The Romanian electoral commission did not immediately respond to an emailed request for comment. On Sunday Pavel Durov, the founder of the Telegram messaging app, accused the head of France's foreign intelligence agency of asking him to ban Romanian conservative voices ahead of the country's elections, saying he refused the request. France's DGSE foreign spy agency denied the allegation. In a post on X referring to Simion's comments, Durov said he was "ready to come and testify if it helps Romanian democracy." Romanian news website Biziday also cited Simion accusing Moldova of interfering in the ballot by buying votes. The Moldovan foreign ministry did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
Russia Today
20-05-2025
- Politics
- Russia Today
Romanian runner-up wants presidential vote nixed for ‘external interferences'
Right-wing EU critic George Simion has said he would challenge the result of Romania's presidential election, claiming it was compromised by 'foreign interference,' flagging France and Moldova in particular. Sunday's runoff saw pro-EU Bucharest Mayor Nicusor Dan defeat his Euroskeptic rival with 54% of the vote in the second round of Romania's presidential election. The rerun was ordered after Romania's Constitutional Court annulled the results of the November election, in which independent candidate Calin Georgescu, an EU and NATO critic, finished first with 23% of the vote. The authorities claimed that there had been 'irregularities' in his campaign, citing intelligence reports alleging Russian interference – allegations which Moscow has denied. In a Tuesday post on X, Simion – who had been the frontrunner – said he had 'officially' asked Romania's top court to annul Sunday's election result 'for the very reasons the December elections were annulled.' 🚨🇷🇴 I officially ask Constitutional Court TO ANNUL Romanian presidential elections (May 2025).For the very reasons December elections were annulled: EXTERNAL INTERFERENCES by state and non-state actors. This time proven with evidence! Neither 🇫🇷, nor 🇲🇩, nor anyone else has… He claimed that there was evidence of 'external interferences by state and non-state actors,' adding that 'Neither France nor Moldova nor anyone else has the right to interfere in the elections of another state.' Simion had previously claimed the electoral rolls contained some 1.7 million fictitious names and accused the government of busing in voters from neighboring Moldova. His Alliance for the Union of Romanians (AUR) had also claimed that Moldova's pro-EU ruling Party of Action and Solidarity (PAS) had directed its million-strong diaspora in Romania to vote for Dan. Telegram founder Pavel Durov, who has claimed French intelligence tried to pressure him into censoring conservative Romanian channels ahead of Sunday's vote, reposted Simion's message, saying he is 'ready to come and testify if it helps Romanian democracy.' I'm ready to come and testify if it helps Romanian democracy. Paris has denied Durov's claim. Romanian officials, in turn, have accused Russia of interfering in the election without providing any proof. Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov has dismissed the accusations, calling the election 'strange' and asserting the most popular candidate had been 'forcibly' removed without justification. In response to Durov's remarks, he also cited what he called the EU's history of meddling in other countries' affairs. Russian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova also dismissed Bucharest's accusations, calling the latest vote illegitimate and saying Romanian officials should clean up their own 'electoral mess' instead of blaming others.
Russia Today
20-05-2025
- Politics
- Russia Today
Telegram's Durov names French official who ‘asked to ban conservative voices'
Telegram founder Pavel Durov has claimed that French foreign intelligence chief Nicolas Lerner personally asked him to censor conservatives on his platform ahead of the contentious rerun of Romania's presidential election. The Russian-born entrepreneur said he refused the request. The accusations of foreign meddling first surfaced last year after Romania's top court annulled the November election results, in which independent right-wing candidate Calin Georgescu came in first with 23%. The authorities cited 'irregularities' in his campaign, along with intelligence reports alleging Russian interference – claims Moscow has denied. Georgescu was later barred from running again. On Sunday, pro-EU centrist Nicusor Dan was elected president of Romania. His conservative, Euroskeptic opponent George Simion accused France and Moldova of attempting to sabotage his campaign. In a post on X on Sunday evening, Durov said he met with Lerner, the head of France's Directorate-General for External Security (DGSE), in Paris. The agency, operating under the Ministry of the Armed Forces, is tasked with gathering intelligence and combating terrorist threats. 'This spring at the Salon des Batailles in the Hotel de Crillon, Nicolas Lerner, head of French intelligence, asked me to ban conservative voices in Romania ahead of elections. I refused,' Durov wrote. 'We didn't block protesters in Russia, Belarus, or Iran. We won't start doing it in Europe.' Durov previously hinted that France asked him to 'silence' Romanian conservatives. The French Foreign Ministry rejected the allegations of election meddling as 'completely unfounded.' 'France categorically rejects these allegations and calls on everyone to exercise responsibility and respect for Romanian democracy,' the ministry stated, labeling the accusations 'a diversionary maneuver' aimed at distracting the public from 'the real threats of interference targeting Romania.' Last year, the French authorities charged Durov with facilitating the distribution of child sexual exploitation material and drug trafficking due to alleged moderation failures on Telegram. He was arrested at Paris-Le Bourget Airport in August before being released on €5 million ($5.46 million) bail. Durov, who has denied any wrongdoing, was eventually allowed to leave France in March.
