Bucarest mayor Nicusor Dan, who is from the center, got a slight advantage over the ultra-right Euro George Simion Euro, according to an opinion poll conducted on Friday (16), before the second round of Sunday’s Romanian presidential election, seen as a test of the rise of Donald Trump-style nationalism in the European Union.
Simion, who opposes military aid to neighboring Ukraine and criticizes the EU leadership, has decisively won the first round of May 4 presidential election, triggering the fall of a pro-western government that led to a significant capital output.
Simion’s victory in the second round of Sunday could isolate Romania, erode private investment and destabilize the eastern flank of the organization of the North Atlantic Treaty (NATO), according to diplomats and analysts.
Dan, who has committed to combat corruption, is firmly in favor of the EU and NATO, and said that Romania’s support to Ukraine is vital to his own safety against the growing Russian threat.
Atlasintel’s survey, commissioned by the local news site HotNews.ro, showed that Dan would get 48.7% of the votes, against 47.8% Simion. Already 1.8% of respondents said they would nullify their vote, while another 1.7% voters were undecided.
The survey of 5,628 people, conducted from 13 to 15 May, had a margin of error of 1%, which suggests a very fierce dispute. Most importantly, the research included the considerable vote of the diaspora, which strongly supported Simion in the first round.
The vote in the diaspora has begun and about 180,000 Romanians have already voted, almost double the attendance at this point in the first round. An Atlasintel survey earlier this week showed Dan and Simion tied.
Change to Russia
Romania seemed ready to get closer to Moscow after Ultra right novice Calin Georgescu won the first round of the presidential election in November. But the country’s Superior Court canceled the election due to suspicions of Russian interference, which was denied by Moscow.
Simion, who was fourth in the canceled vote, supported Georgescu-which was forbidden to apply again-and became his replacement. He said he would appoint Georgescu as Prime Minister.
On Friday night, Georgescu told private television station that he wanted to office and suggested an opening regarding Russia.
“We have a very detailed plan to recover everything the EU owes us,” he said, alongside Simion. “Let’s double, triple the absorption of backgrounds (EU).”
“You need to get along with the big powers. The United States are the first, the main partner in everything. But besides … we have China, Russia, Brazil. It’s … unimaginable to have antagonistic relationships; we need to have relationships based on a minimum of respect.”
Georgescu, who says it is favorable to nationalizations and preferred treatment for Romanian companies, is under criminal investigation on charges of belonging to a fascist group and irregularities in campaign financing.
This content was originally published in an election in Romania: Candidate for the center has an advantage over ultra -right on CNN Brazil.
Source: CNN Brasil
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