Quotes
The race has become very close,
Remus Stefureac, director of polling company INSCOP Research, told AFP
Each of the four could win the presidency,
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We are here with a single mission: to return to democracy... and bring justice to Romania,
said SimionIt's time to take our country back,
said the barred Georgescu after casting his ballot alongside Simion in Mogosoaia, on the outskirts of BucharestI'm trying my luck again,
said the 37-year-old driver in BucharestThere are several ways in which, if the Romanian people want, Mr. Georgescu can be in the leadership, and we will use it,
Simion told foreign reporters on Sunday
We can form a majority and have him as a prime minister; we can have snap elections, or we can call for a referendum,
Simion said, without specifying what referendum he was consideringThe anti-establishment sentiment is not like an anarchic movement, but is against the people who destroyed this country,
Simion, who came fourth in last year's race and later backed Georgescu, told The Associated Press days before the rerun
We are here with one mission only: the return to constitutional order, the return to democracy. I have no other goal than first place for the Romanian people."
At a polling station in the capital, Bucharest, Simion appeared Sunday morning alongside Georgescu and told reportersWhat happened in December 2024 is definitely a dark chapter in the history of this country, and we can no longer accept it,
he saidI voted with realism, because Romania is going through a difficult time,
he saidIf my vote gets canceled again or if the one I chose won't get elected, I'll take to the streets,
he saidGeorge Simion equals Calin Georgescu, he gets my vote,
said Aurelia, 66, a pensioner who declined to give her last name
There is clear evidence that there was some sort of nefarious activity going on in the November election,
James E. Trainor III, Commissioner of the US Federal Election Commission, told Reuters in BucharestUntil we bring Romanian citizens out of poverty to an acceptable degree, I will no longer support other nations in Romania."
Presidential candidate Simion told Radio Europa in April
NATO is our strongest defense pillar, and Romania remains a committed and reliable ally. We must step up investments to strengthen our defense capability."
Nevertheless, ... when US President Trump temporarily halted military aid to Ukraine in February, interim president Ilie Bolojan insistedWe want a capable person who knows how to speak up for the Romanian people in the EU.”
Pensioner Eugenia Niculescu, 65, who lives in Bucharest and has struggled to pay for her medication and other bills amid soaring inflation, told the AFP news agency
It is clear a strong anti-western trend has been built up and Romania’s direction is at unprecedented risk,
said Cristian Pîrvulescu, a political scientist
The time for rebirth has come,
he said in a video posted on TuesdayThis time, we'll steal the second round from them,
said Simion, pressing for a first-round win, which would require more than 50 percent of the vote