Hard-right nationalist George Simion, 38, who opposes military aid to neighbouring Ukraine and is critical of European Union leadership, decisively swept the first presidential election round, triggering the collapse of a pro-Western coalition government. That led to significant capital outflows.
The president of the EU and NATO state has considerable powers, not least being in charge of the defence council that decides on military aid. He will also have oversight of foreign policy, with the power to veto EU votes that require unanimity.
An opinion poll on Friday showed Dan slightly ahead of Simion for the first time since the first round in a tight race that will depend on turnout and the sizable Romanian diaspora.
“We cannot afford to drift.”
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The vote comes on the same day as the first round of Poland's presidential election, expected to be led by pro-EU Warsaw mayor Rafal Trzaskowski and conservative historian Karol Nawrocki.
“What the (nationalists) want is a European Union that is as little integrated as possible,“ said political analyst and historian Ion M. Ionita.
Romania's vote comes nearly six months after the initial ballot was cancelled because of alleged Russian interference - denied by Moscow - in favour of far-right frontrunner Calin Georgescu, who was then banned from standing again.
Simion has said his prime minister pick would be Georgescu, who favours nationalisations and an openness towards Russia.
“We’re seeing disinformation spreading like wildfire across social media platforms – through bots and strategic reshares mimicking authentic posting,“ said Roxana Radu, expert at Oxford University’s Blavatnik School of Government.
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