site.btaSome 30 Citizens Protest against Annulment of Presidential Elections in Romania

Some 30 people gathered in front of the Court of Appeal in Bucharest on Wednesday to protest the decision of the Romanian Constitutional Court to annul the first round of the country’s presidential elections.

The demonstrators chanted slogans such as "We want a second round," "Down with Iohannis" (referring to current Romanian President Klaus Iohannis), "Romania is not yours," "Down with the system," "Calin Georgescu," "Unity,", "Freedom," and waved Romanian national flags.

One of the protesters told BTA that they demand for the first round of elections to be recognized and a second round to be held. "We want free and fair elections, but unfortunately, we see that the system is corrupt," the protesting woman added.

The protest follows the Bucharest Court of Appeal’s December 31 decision to reject an appeal filed by far-right independent presidential candidate Calin Georgescu against the Romanian Constitutional Court's ruling to annul the presidential elections. The decision can be appealed within five days of its announcement.

In a video address on Facebook, Calin Georgescu argued that the Bucharest Court of Appeal has shown that it lacks the courage the Romanian people have. "They are afraid. They want to serve the system, not the people. With their decision, the people have been condemned to accept corruption and the absence of the rule of law. They were betrayed by those meant to protect them," Georgescu said.

On December 6, the Constitutional Court annulled the results of the first round of the presidential elections, in which the far-right independent candidate Georgescu received the most votes. The decision followed the disclosure of intelligence documents revealing coordinated hybrid attacks orchestrated by Moscow aimed at undermining the elections and evidence that Georgescu violated election laws by declaring zero expenses for his campaign.

The Constitutional Court ruled that the entire election process must restart in 2025. The ruling coalition in Romania proposed that the first round of the presidential elections take place on March 23, with the second round on April 6. A final decision on the dates of the elections will be made at the government’s first meeting later in January.