Chaos, interference, fascism, TikTok taint Romanian election
December 6, 2024 7:44 AM   Subscribe

Romania's high court cancels results of first presidential runoff, announcing entirely new elections. The country's security council found that during the first round, Romania was the target of "aggressive hybrid Russian attacks." Călin Georgescu, a Russia-supporting fringe right candidate had been polling at around 4% before coming out on top during the first round of voting with 23% after his TikTok-based campaign gained last minute momentum. His sudden rise has sparked massive protests, but years of corruption within the two parties most often in control of the government (PSD, the social democrats and PNL, the national liberal party, both of whom were shut out of the runoff) have fueled intense suspicion that ruling elites are more interested in shoring up their position than protecting democracy.

Georgescu has been a controversial figure for, among other reasons: The other candidate who had been slated to compete in the final election (which had been scheduled for this Sunday) was Elena Lasconi, a former newscaster with popular television network Pro TV. More recently, Lasconi had served as the mayor of Câmpulung, as well as serving as president of the reformist center-right party USR (Save Romania Union). She has made public allegations that she believes troll farms were put to work to fuel Georgescu's last minute rise.

The Institute for the Study of War examines evidence of Kremlin-backed interference.

For its part, the EU has launched a probe over irregularities related to TikTok's actions during the campaign. Though Georgescu claims to have spent "zero" on his TikTok campaign, declassified intelligence reports released by Romania's Supreme Defense Council (CSAT) suggest a €1 million ($1.06 million) price tag, with much of that seeimngly paid to influencers on the platform. TikTok says it acted responsibly, removing a network of 22 accounts targeting Romanians with “misinformation” in September and disclosing that it disrupted two campaigns supporting Georgescu and another independent candidate. In any case, it is now known that TikTok failed to properly mark Georgescu's videos for the platform as political content, which is not only standard practice, but legally required for Romanian political candidates.

Meanwhile, The ruling center-left Social Democratic Party (PSD) has once again won Romania's parliamentary elections, though not having won even close to a majority, are expected to struggle to establish a ruling coalition.
posted by DirtyOldTown (29 comments total) 29 users marked this as a favorite
 
I would like to encourage you not to try to overlay American political frameworks onto Romanian publics.

Yes, PSD has on paper, the platform that would catch the average MeFite's eye... they are, however, famously rotten with corruption. PNL isn't much better. USR is admirably reformist, but its politics are the kind of center-right stuff the Clintons pushed 35 years ago, such as civil unions over gay marriage, restrictions on LGBT rights, globalism, deregulation, privatization, etc.

AUR are standard 2024 European authoritarians, but as noted above, Georgescu left/was asked to leave that party for being too pro-Russian. That's why he had to run as an independent. AUR has nonetheless promised to back him if he wins.

Romanian mass media is frantically trying to backtrack and cover what a bonkers ass person Georgescu is, but after years and years of corruption from the ruling parties, many Romanians are glad to see his ascent as a rejection of the status quo.

Before the first round was annulled, polls had Georgescu up 58-42 over Lasconi, and I could honestly see many Romanians supporting him in even larger numbers just out of spit from the perceived attempt to hold onto power by the PSD/PNL alliance.

If you really and truly need an American analogy, the final round of the runoff was less Trump vs. Hillary than it was a more fashy RFK Jr. vs. Katie Couric, if Couric was propping up the 1992 Democratic Party platform.

Only now that's out, too, so who the hell even knows.
posted by DirtyOldTown at 7:51 AM on December 6, 2024 [16 favorites]


There are additional fun things going around about Georgescu that I didn't have time to dig up English language sources for, such as him saying that the only reason for a food product to contain more than six ingredients is if most of them are nanochips, put it in to allow mind control.
posted by DirtyOldTown at 7:59 AM on December 6, 2024 [2 favorites]


@darthputinkgb.bsky.social‬: They call them "hybrid attacks" cos if they called them "attacks" they might be expected to do something about them.
posted by 1970s Antihero at 8:08 AM on December 6, 2024 [4 favorites]


Well, I mean they're calling them hybrid attacks because they were cyber attacks using more than one methodology to access the system and that is the name for that.

And they tossed out presidential election results, so that's not doing nothing. It's a shockingly big deal. HUGE.

The real problem is, PSD/PNL have a rep for being willing to manipulate the strings of government to preserve their position. Neither party made it to the final runoff because of interference. So now that the government has acted, many Romanians are just assuming it's more of the same.

(Also above where I said that "AUR is admirably reformist" no they are fucking not. I meant to type USR. AUR is a pack of fascist shitbirds. I asked the mods to fix that. But just for the record, big error on my part.)
posted by DirtyOldTown at 8:36 AM on December 6, 2024 [6 favorites]


Hybrid attacks are where you attack from home three days a week and from the office two days a week.
posted by caviar2d2 at 8:38 AM on December 6, 2024 [12 favorites]


I am so jealous of how other countries have mechanisms for quickly running and re-running snap elections.

The US has a rigid calendar because in 1789 there was no real way to do snap elections on horseback. (There was in Britain: the Royal Post did not take that long to send riders from London to Cornwall, Wales and Scotland.) Brazil also has a rigid calendar for the same reason, and the dynamics they engender are a curse.

And yes, the running parties of Romania are infested with Homo sapiens. Same as always. That does not mean they should accept this Black Mirror episode as their fate.
posted by ocschwar at 9:28 AM on December 6, 2024 [5 favorites]


I really encourage people to spend a few minutes with the thought exercise of what Europe could look like if the staging ground for Ukraine's NATO support backs out and starts to tilt pro-Russia at the same time as TFG takes office and curtails/ends US support.
posted by DirtyOldTown at 9:34 AM on December 6, 2024 [6 favorites]


Part of the backdrop to this is that Georgia's recent elections saw a lot of blatant election rigging, such as ballot box stuffing in broad daylight. The winner was Georgian Dream, the fashy pro-Russia party, who immediately suspended their application the to EU, and now there are nightly protests across the country with violent suppression from water cannons and tear gas.

Russia seems to have gone all in on election interference in its neighbours and, like the nerve gas assassinations in the UK, isn't particularly concerned that people know it's them doing it.
posted by fatbird at 10:20 AM on December 6, 2024 [8 favorites]


at least, like in italy, romania's right it split...
Romanian hard right says it wants to be part of new government - "AUR leader George Simion... says he is not pro-Russian, calling President Vladimir Putin a war criminal, and supports Romania's NATO and EU membership status, though he condemns what he calls a 'greedy, corrupt bubble' in EU headquarters Brussels."

meanwhile, across the black sea, re: georgia also btw, not to bring this back to america, but...
Court upholds a U.S. ban on TikTok - "In its ruling, the court said that it was 'precisely' because of TikTok's 'expansive reach' that both Congress and the president determined that divesting it from China's control 'is essential to protect our national security.' In its opinion, the court wrote that TikTok's ownership by a China-based company, ByeDance, represents a national security threat that surpasses the free speech concerns TikTok raised."

though this is likely to be appealed...
-TikTok Seeks Support From Court, Trump to Hold Off US Ban
-TikTok CEO Seeks Musk's Counsel on Incoming Trump Administration

as autocrats unite...
-Argentina's Milei hosts Trump allies, Bolsonaro clan at right-wing summit
-Bolsonaro Is Making a Comeback Bid in Brazil and Betting on Trump's Help
posted by kliuless at 10:20 AM on December 6, 2024 [7 favorites]


Won that by a nose, I see.
posted by fatbird at 10:22 AM on December 6, 2024 [2 favorites]


French government collapse: Le Pen eyes chance to destroy Macron
(subtext: The centrists and far-right count as real parties)
posted by jeffburdges at 10:41 AM on December 6, 2024 [2 favorites]


Russia seems to have gone all in on election interference in its neighbours and, like the nerve gas assassinations in the UK, isn't particularly concerned that people know it's them doing it.

For sure. And when they tried this and failed with Moldova, also being more or less outed for their fuckery, they simply doubled down and tried harder in the next elections.
posted by DirtyOldTown at 10:53 AM on December 6, 2024 [1 favorite]


My friend Adrian's poster at the anti-Georgescu rally in Cluj tonight.

(Translates to "100% without nanochips") (referring to Georgescu's accusation that Coke, Pepsi, Fanta, etc. contain nanochips)
posted by DirtyOldTown at 12:08 PM on December 6, 2024 [2 favorites]


Romanian protest signs are FIRE.

You can find earlier pictures with signs like "Where's my money, Soros?"
posted by ocschwar at 12:32 PM on December 6, 2024 [1 favorite]


You’re biased, Romanian far-right MEP tells top court after ban from presidential race
posted by clavdivs at 1:38 PM on December 6, 2024


You’re biased, Romanian far-right MEP tells top court after ban from presidential race

Șoșoacă is fucking nuts. She said that not only should Romania not stand in the way if Russia tries to seize Ukrainian territory, but it might provide a great opening for Romanian to grab some too.

Also, she's an extreme anti-Semite.
posted by DirtyOldTown at 1:55 PM on December 6, 2024


Heard tell (and some public pix) that she's gone off to Doha now. The gulf countries must be jam-packed now, what with the Assadists fleeing too.
posted by cendawanita at 1:37 AM on December 7, 2024 [1 favorite]


Democracy being re-branded as aligning with the US and their EU vassals is at least more honest.
posted by Space Coyote at 7:53 AM on December 7, 2024


The bigger news from that tweet, cendawanita, is that Victor Ponta also fled the country. He's a former prime minister from PSD (the Social Democrat Party).

When I tell y'all most of you have no idea how bad Romanian corruption is, "former PM possibly in flight to non-extradition country after being accused of helping throw presidential election from his own party to pro-Russians" is a pretty god-damned good example.
posted by DirtyOldTown at 9:15 AM on December 7, 2024 [1 favorite]


That would actually be wild, so I am scouring news sources in a couple of languages looking for an official report to go with that tweet.
posted by DirtyOldTown at 9:42 AM on December 7, 2024


It’s been some decades since I’ve had Romanian mud on my boots, but if I remember it right, my response to these fucking fucks should go something like: “Lasamun pace! Esti un rahat!”
posted by house-goblin at 10:58 AM on December 7, 2024 [1 favorite]


Prosecutors raid properties of key Georgescu backer in Romania election probe

If this is all a little TLDR, try this article from Politico: Romanian election: What the hell is going on?
posted by DirtyOldTown at 1:22 PM on December 7, 2024


NYT Gift Link: In a Romanian Village, Anger Fuels Support for an Ultranationalist ‘Messiah’
Mr. Marian said he was so disgusted by what he sees as self-serving elites that if it were possible, he would gladly vote for Nicolae Ceaușescu, Romania’s former communist dictator, who was ousted and executed in December 1989. Ceaușescu, he said, “was fighting for the people so that they did not need to go abroad to find work.”
posted by DirtyOldTown at 1:32 PM on December 7, 2024


Police in Romania have detained several people as they headed toward Bucharest carrying guns, machetes, and knives to allegedly "disrupt public order and peace," authorities said on December 8.

At least 13 people were being questioned by law enforcement agencies after their vehicles were stopped overnight in the Ilfov county, police sources told RFE/RL.

Authorities did not release the names of those in custody but according to sources at the judiciary, among them is Horatiu Potra, leader of the contingent of Romanian private military contractors fighting in the African nation of Congo.
posted by DirtyOldTown at 10:49 AM on December 8, 2024


I don't have an English-language link yet, but this article indicates the newest phase of the investigation has uncovered flat-out vote buying.
posted by DirtyOldTown at 6:23 AM on December 12, 2024 [1 favorite]


TikTok influencers flee Romania amid tax probe into their election role
posted by DirtyOldTown at 9:01 PM on December 12, 2024 [1 favorite]


Georgescu's campaign manager detained while attempting to flee to the African country of Chad
posted by DirtyOldTown at 7:52 AM on December 13, 2024


Apparently, the Romanian Liberals did a "let's boost the least credible opponent to torpedo our opposition": Report ties Romanian liberals to TikTok campaign that fueled pro-Russia candidate
According to the snoop.ro report, the Romanian tax agency found that the Liberals had paid for a social media campaign on TikTok through influencers and by promoting a hashtag which ended up being hijacked to benefit Georgescu instead. The Liberals are a junior coalition partner in the outgoing government and their candidate, Nicolae Ciuca, placed fifth in the annulled first round.
The Romanian snoop.ro report has way more details than the politico summary, would be great to have it translated.
posted by kmt at 1:23 AM on December 23, 2024 [1 favorite]


There are some mixed verdicts on that. Some people say they intended to boost Georgescu, others say they paid to boost a hashtag to promote their own candidates and were unaware it had been hijacked by Georgescu's team and was now promoting him, even as they were paying for it.
posted by DirtyOldTown at 9:08 AM on December 23, 2024


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