Far-right candidate leads Romania’s presidential rerun

BUCHAREST: Romania´s far-right candidate George Simion was leading in Sunday´s first round of presidential elections according to exit polls for the rerun of last year´s annulled ballot that plunged the country into political turmoil.

The stakes are high for the Nato country of 19 million, which has become a key pillar of the defence alliance since Russia´s invasion of Ukraine. Simion, leader of the nationalist AUR party, scored between 30 to 33 percent of the vote, according to two exit polls. Crin Antonescu, backed by Romania´s governing pro-European coalition, was neck-and-neck with Bucharest mayor Nicusor Dan, who both took between 21 and 23 percent.