In Romania, the Republican front continues after the elections to prevent the far right from governing

ROMANIA – Barring access to power for a rising far right. It is not only in France that the Republican front exists. In Romania, four pro-European political forces reached an agreement this Monday, December 23 to form a government and to nominate a single presidential candidate after its surprise cancellation.

“I appoint Marcel Ciolacu as Prime Minister”declared liberal President Klaus Iohannis. I wish him much success for the new pro-European coalition”, “capable of managing the timetable for future elections. »

This same Marcel Ciolacu, social democratic leader of the outgoing government, had announced a little earlier that he had found “a political agreement” while recognizing that his task would not be “not easy”. “Our duty is above all to defend democratic values ​​in NATO”he added.

According to this agreement, the new majority resulting from the legislative elections of December 1 led by the social democrats of the PSD, who came in first with 22% of the votes, will be supported by the liberals of the PNL, as during the previous legislature. But also this time by the UDMR party of the Hungarian minority and by the gathering of ethnic minorities (GPMN).

The presidential election canceled just before the second round

This new government is weakened by the unprecedented rise of the far right in this country on the eastern flank of NATO which plays a crucial role in supporting Ukraine, with which it shares a long border. Because the far-right AUR party collected 18% of the votes in the legislative elections and in total, the three parties of the nationalist bloc now represent 32% of voters, more than triple the score recorded in 2020 by AUR, then alone in the running.

Especially since the formation of this majority comes after an unprecedented twist, the cancellation on December 6 of the presidential election by the Constitutional Court, two days before the second round.

Earlier, authorities declassified intelligence documents supporting accusations over the role « massif » of TikTok in the campaign, with Russia in the sights, the EU also opening an investigation.

In the first round, the nationalist candidate Calin Georgescu came out on top to everyone's surprise, sweeping away the favorites in the ranks of the government parties and causing a political earthquake. This 62-year-old former senior official, critical of the EU, NATO and all military aid to Ukraine, then spoke of “coup d’état” and estimated that the “democracy was in danger”.

A common pro-Europe presidential candidate

The new Romanian government will have to organize the vote and the political forces making up the majority have agreed to have a common candidate for president. “We agreed that this candidate would be Crin Antonescu”a 65-year-old former liberal president of the Senate who came third in the presidential election in 2009, said liberal representative Ilie Bolojan.

In 2009, Crin Antonescu had already been a candidate in the presidential election and placed third. He was the leader of the Liberals between 2009 and 2014, while presiding over the Senate between 2012 and 2014. He was interim president of Romania for a month and a half in the summer of 2012.

Dan Tanasa, spokesperson for the AUR party, denounced in a press release a “democratic simulacrum”, “all procedures having been forced” to set up “an illegitimate government”.

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