The unprecedented cancelation of Romania’s vote drew condemnation from across the political spectrum.
The European Court of Human Rights on Tuesday rejected Romanian far-right presidential candidate Călin Georgescu’s petition to reinstate the result of the annulled first round of the country’s election.
The first round of Romania’s election last November saw Georgescu, a largely unknown, pro-Moscow ultranationalist candidate claim a shock victory.
But the contest was annulled by Romania’s Constitutional Court before the second round runoff could take place, with Georgescu benefitting from a Russia-style booster campaign involving TikTok, according to declassified Romanian intelligence documents.
Georgescu filed a petition with the ECHR asking for the result of the first round to be reinstated as an interim measure.
But on Tuesday the Strasbourg-based court threw out his case, ruling it fell “outside the scope of application of Rule 39,” which relates to when the court can issue such urgent orders. It did not rule on the merits of his case otherwise.
Georgescu also lost a bid in a Romanian appeals court earlier this month to overturn the annulment.
The unprecedented cancelation of Romania’s vote drew condemnation from across the political spectrum, including from Georgescu’s ideological foes. His would-be opponent in the now-canceled runoff, reformist candidate Elena Lasconi, said Romania’s democracy was being “trampled” by the state.
A new election will take place on May 4, with a runoff planned two weeks later on May 18. Georgescu said he will run again and is leading in the polls — though the reliability of such surveys was called into question by his unforeseen victory the first time round.
