Six months after its presidential election was thrown out over accusations of Russian interference favoring the far-right winner, Romania held a rerun on Sunday. Russia's presence was felt again, Politico Europe reports, when hacker groups hit government and candidate websites while voting was being held. The election is a test of the influence of the President Trump-style nationalism, per Reuters: The leader in exit polls, George Simion, is critical of the EU, opposes aid to Ukraine, and says he's in sync with the MAGA movement.
Simion, the new right-wing candidate, was running at better than 30% in the exit polls, with two centrists—former senator Crin Antonescu and Bucharest Mayor Nicusor Dan—pulling just over 20%. If no candidate receives more than half of the vote, which appears nearly certain, the top two will meet in a runoff on May 18. "This is not just an electoral victory, it is a victory of Romanian dignity," Simion said after the exit polls were announced. "It is the victory of those who have not lost hope, of those who still believe in Romania, a free, respected, sovereign country."
Calin Georgescu won the December election but was barred from running again. He went to the polls on Sunday with Simion, his replacement. "George Simion equals Calin Georgescu, he gets my vote," said a retiree. Political analysts warn Simion's election could isolate Romania and destabilize NATO's eastern flank, where neighboring Ukraine is fighting off a Russian invasion. The sites attacked Sunday included those of Antonescu and Dan, local media reported. The hackers claimed responsibility for the denial of service attacks on Telegram, per Politico, and the government said all of the sites were back up by mid-afternoon. (More Romania stories.)
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