A top Romanian court has rejected an appeal by far-right politician Călin Georgescu to lift a ban on his candidacy in a rerun of the presidential election, sparking anger among his supporters.
Georgescu, a Moscow-friendly populist, surged from almost nowhere to win the first round of the election last year, but the result was annulled by Romania’s top court because of suspected Russian interference.
Amid claims of “massive” social media manipulation, he was placed under criminal investigation last month on six charges including false statements about his campaign financing, fraudulent use of digital technologies, and promoting fascist organisations. He has denied any wrongdoing.
The unanimous ruling on Tuesday by the constitutional court in Bucharest came two days after the central election bureau rejected Georgescu’s candidacy for the rerun of the election, due in May. The court’s decision is final.
Hundreds of Georgescu supporters who had gathered near the court, many waving Romanian flags, responded by chanting “thieves”.
Sunday’s decision to bar the candidate drew sharp criticism from Washington, with the US presidential adviser Elon Musk posting: “This is crazy.” The billionaire returned to the subject on Monday, saying: “How can a judge end democracy in Romania?”
The US vice-president, JD Vance, had previously said the annulment of the first-round vote showed Romania did not share American values. Georgescu, 62, a former government official, is leading in the polls and was projected to win about 40% of votes in May.
Responding to the decision on Sunday, Georgescu said it was “just the beginning … Europe is now a dictatorship. Romania is under tyranny”.
In a video on Facebook, he said: “We go all the way for the same values: peace, democracy, freedom.” He urged his supporters, who clashed with police on Sunday night, to refrain from violent protests.
Georgescu has lauded Russia’s president, Vladimir Putin, as “a man who loves his country” and praised Romania’s 1930s fascist leaders. The promotion of fascist leaders and Nazi, racist or xenophobic symbols is banned under Romanian law.
Associated Press contributed to this report.