Romania’s pro-European Union presidential candidate Nicușor Dan has the lead in the country’s election on Sunday after more than 80% of the votes were counted.
Hard-right candidate George Simion, who opposes providing military aid to Ukraine and is critical of the EU, looked on track to win the election after he swept the first round on May 4. However, Dan gained ground after trouncing Simion in a televised debate.
The election comes five months after the result of the original vote, which saw former far-right outsider Calin Georgescu surge in popularity, was annulled over allegations of Russian interference.
Georgescu was later banned from this month’s rerun after being charged with various crimes, including founding a fascist group.
Sunday’s election was widely seen as a choice between East and West and a litmus test for the rise of Trump-style nationalism in Europe.
Dan, who is currently the mayor of the capital Bucharest, is a strong supporter of Romania’s NATO membership and has pledged to continue providing aid to Ukraine, which he sees as key to Romania’s own security against the threat from Russia. He has also promised to crack down on corruption.
Simion appears to have the support of Romania’s diaspora, one of the largest of any country in the world. About 60% of the diaspora voted for Simion in the first round. Since then, he spent a lot of time outside Romania, traveling to Austria, Italy, Poland, Belgium, France and the United Kingdom, in an effort to win over voters abroad.
