Latest news with #sovereignism
Fox News
27-05-2025
- General
- Fox News
Romanian populist who ran for president before election was annulled steps away from politics
Romanian populist Calin Georgescu announced his retirement from politics after being barred from running in the country's presidential election rerun this month. The decision comes after Georgescu ran for president late last year and emerged victorious in the first round of voting. However, a top Romanian court then annulled the result after allegations emerged of electoral violations and Russian interference. Georgescu was later banned from participating in this month's contest, which was won by pro-European Union candidate Nicusor Dan. "I choose to be a passive observer of public and social life," the 63-year-old Georgescu said in a video posted online late Monday. "I choose to remain outside any political party structure … I am not affiliated with any political group in any way." Georgescu – who ran as an independent in November – said he made his decision to take a step back following the conclusion of the presidential race, which for him indicated "the sovereignist movement has come to a close." "Even though this political chapter has ended, I am convinced that the values and ideals we fought for together remain steadfast," he added. "My dear ones, I have always said that we would make history, not politics." In February, prosecutors opened criminal proceedings against Georgescu, accusing him of incitement to undermine the constitutional order, election campaign funding abuses, and founding or supporting fascist, racist, xenophobic, or antisemitic organizations, among other charges. On Tuesday, he was due to appear at the prosecutor's office in Bucharest. Despite what appeared to be a sprawling social media campaign promoting him, Georgescu had declared zero campaign spending in last year's contest. A Romanian court then made the unprecedented move to annul the election. "This December, Romania straight up canceled the results of a presidential election based on the flimsy suspicions of an intelligence agency and enormous pressure from its continental neighbors," Vice President JD Vance said in a speech at the Munich Security Conference in February. "Now, as I understand it, the argument was that Russian disinformation had infected the Romanian elections, but I'd ask my European friends to have some perspective. You can believe it's wrong for Russia to buy social media advertisements to influence your elections. We certainly do. You can condemn it on the world stage even. But if your democracy can be destroyed with a few hundred thousand dollars of digital advertising from a foreign country, then it wasn't very strong to begin with," Vance added. Georgescu sparked controversy for describing Romanian fascist and nationalist leaders from the 1930s and 1940s as national heroes, according to the Associated Press. He has also praised Russian President Vladimir Putin in the past as "a man who loves his country" and has questioned Ukraine's statehood, but he claims not to be pro-Russian. Georgescu has argued the election was "canceled illegally and unconstitutionally," and after he was barred from the May rerun, he accused the authorities of "inventing evidence to justify the theft" of the elections. Earlier this year, thousands of protesters took to the streets of Bucharest in a show of support for Georgescu.
BreakingNews.ie
27-05-2025
- General
- BreakingNews.ie
Populist frontrunner in Romania's cancelled election to step back from politics
Calin Georgescu, the populist whose bid for Romania's presidency last year resulted in the annulment of an election in the European Union and Nato member country, has announced he is stepping away from political life. Mr Georgescu upended Romania's political landscape last November when he ran as an independent and unexpectedly surged to frontrunner in the first round of the presidential election, going from an obscure candidate to beating the incumbent prime minister. Advertisement 'I choose to be a passive observer of public and social life,' the 63-year-old said in a video posted online late on Monday. 'I choose to remain outside any political party structure … I am not affiliated with any political group in any way.' Calin Georgescu, centre, upended Romania's political landscape last November (Vadim Ghirda/AP) Despite denying any wrongdoing, Mr Georgescu was barred from the tense election rerun held in May, won by pro-EU candidate Nicusor Dan, who was officially sworn in on Monday. Mr Dan, a mathematician and former Bucharest mayor, beat the hard-right nationalist George Simion, who became Mr Georgescu's nominal successor. Advertisement Mr Georgescu said he had made his decision to take a step back following the conclusion of the presidential race, which for him indicated 'the sovereignist movement has come to a close'. 'Even though this political chapter has ended, I am convinced that the values and ideals we fought for together remain steadfast,' he said. 'My dear ones, I have always said that we would make history, not politics.' The outcome of Mr Georgescu's success in last year's chaotic election cycle sent shockwaves through Romania's political establishment. It also left many observers wondering how most local surveys had put him behind at least five other candidates. Advertisement Mr Georgescu was barred from the tense election rerun held this month (Andreea Alexandru/AP) Despite what appeared to be a sprawling social media campaign promoting him, Mr Georgescu had declared zero campaign spending. A top Romanian court then made the unprecedented move to annul the election after allegations emerged of electoral violations and Russian interference. In February, prosecutors opened criminal proceedings against Mr Georgescu, accusing him of incitement to undermine the constitutional order, election campaign funding abuses, and founding or supporting fascist, racist, xenophobic, or antisemitic organisations, among other charges. He was due to appear at the prosecutor's office in Bucharest on Tuesday. Advertisement Once a member of Mr Simion's hard-right Alliance for the Unity of Romanians, Mr Georgescu left the party in 2022 after a period of infighting. He was accused by colleagues of being pro-Russian and critical of Nato, the US-led military alliance to which Romania belongs. He sparked controversy for describing Romanian fascist and nationalist leaders from the 1930s and 1940s as national heroes. He has also praised Russian president Vladimir Putin in the past as 'a man who loves his country' and has questioned Ukraine's statehood, but he claims not to be pro-Russian. The presidential election was won by pro-EU candidate Nicusor Dan (Andreea Alexandru/AP) After Romania's decision to cancel the election last year, Mr Georgescu became a cause celebre among nationalists, with support coming from figures such as US vice president JD Vance and tech billionaire Elon Musk — who both criticised Romania for annulling the vote. Mr Georgescu has argued the election was 'cancelled illegally and unconstitutionally', and after he was barred from the May rerun, he accused the authorities of 'inventing evidence to justify the theft' of the elections. Advertisement Earlier this year, thousands of protesters took to the streets of Bucharest in a show of support for Mr Georgescu, who cemented his status as a persecuted anti-system candidate, railing against a corrupt political class. 'I deeply understand what many of you have gone through: you suffered, you were harassed, humiliated, wronged, and marginalised,' Mr Georgescu said on Monday, adding that he might return to politics 'if a serious opportunity arises that could bring real benefits to Romania and the Romanian people'.
