Pro-EU centrist Nicusor Dan has won Romania’s presidential election, defeating his hard-right, nationalist rival who pledged to put the country on a path inspired by US President Donald Trump's politics.
Mr Dan, 55, mayor of Bucharest, won the ballot on Sunday in a shock upset over George Simion. Mr Dan took 54 per cent of the vote in the EU and Nato member country of about 19 million people, with his rival receiving 46 per cent of ballots.
The first round of the Polish presidential elections this weekend also pitted a pro-EU candidate against a nationalist admirer of Mr Trump.
Mr Simion, leader of the far-right Alliance for the Union of Romanians (AUR) party, is a Eurosceptic who wanted to end military aid for Ukraine in its war with Russia. He won the first round of the election two weeks ago with 41 per cent of the vote, but he conceded after initially saying he won the election.
Mr Dan, a softly spoken mathematician, campaigned on a pledge to fight against corruption, maintain support for Ukraine and keep Romania firmly within the European mainstream.
"Elections are not about politicians, they are about communities,” he said, after his victory was confirmed. “And the community that won today wants profound changes. Romania starts a new phase tomorrow and it needs each of you.”
Hi supporters gathered in the capital Bucharest on Sunday evening and chanted "Russia, don't forget, Romania isn't yours".
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy congratulated Mr Dan on his "historic victory”, adding that “for Ukraine – as a neighbour and friend – it is important to have Romania as a reliable partner”.
Voting in Romania took place on the same day as the first round of a Polish election in which a liberal front-runner, Rafal Trzaskowski, edged ahead of Karol Nawrocki, the candidate backed by the opposition nationalist Law and Justice (PiS) party.
Mr Trzaskowski placed first with 31.2 per cent of the vote, with Mr Nawrocki taking 29.5 per cent. The gap was much narrower than the 4-7 percentage points reported in polls before the vote.
If confirmed, the result would mean Mr Trzaskowski and Mr Nawrocki will go head-to-head in a run-off vote on June 1 to determine whether Poland sticks firmly on the pro-European track set by Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk, or moves closer to nationalist admirers of Mr Trump.
"We are going for victory. I said that it would be close and it is close," Mr Trzaskowski told supporters. "There is a lot, a lot, of work ahead of us and we need determination."
Mr Nawrocki told supporters he was confident of victory in the second round and called on the far-right to get behind him o "save Poland".
"We have to win these elections so that there is no monopoly of power of one political group, so that there is no monolithic power in Poland," he added.
Far-right candidates Slawomir Mentzen and Grzegorz Braun earned more than 21 per cent combined, a historically high amount. Mr Braun, who in 2023 caused international outrage when he used a fire extinguisher to put out Hanukkah candles in the country's parliament, won 6.3 per cent of the vote, according to the late poll.
Meanwhile, Portugal’s ruling centre-right coalition won a snap election, in a vote in which the far-right Chega party made historic gains and competed with the Socialists for second place. The result rocked the two-party system that has dominated Portuguese politics for 50 years.
Prime Minister Luis Montenegro’s coalition received nearly 33 per cent of the vote and increased its seats in parliament to at least 89, up from 80, early official results showed.
While that is a stronger performance than last year’s vote, it still leaves the ruling party well short of the 116 seats required for an absolute majority in the 230-seat parliament. That means the Prime Minister will lead a minority government.
But it was Chega that stole the spotlight, with results indicating it could overtake the Socialist Party to become the second largest group in parliament. With the majority of the votes counted, the two parties were tied at 58 seats each. Only four seats, reserved for voters living abroad, have still to be allocated.
