While those catchy videos were an unexpected vote-winner, Georgescu’s main campaign themes had a classic populist appeal: He cited traditional Christian values, vowed to stand up for people excluded economically, and said he would make Romania more self-sufficient in sectors such as food and energy.
Adrian Axinia, vice-president of the far-right Alliance for the Union of Romanians (AUR) and a member of the European Parliament, said those issues would come to the fore in the parliamentary election on Sunday. Georgescu was a member of AUR before standing as an independent.
“People seem to be going with the sovereigntist option, and they showed that they don’t accept being treated as second-tier citizens in Europe anymore,” Axinia said.
AUR has surged to the top of a poll ahead of the parliamentary election on Sunday. It is expected to win just over 22 percent, ahead of the establishment center-left Social Democrat Party (PSD) on just over 21 percent, according to a survey conducted over the past few days by AtlasIntel, a small polling company.
Two other far-right parties, SOS Romania, led by MEP Diana Șoșoacă, and the Party of Young People, founded last year by a former AUR member, are polling just under the 5 percent threshold required to obtain parliamentary seats, but could well make it over the line.
The party that wins the most votes in Sunday’s election is expected to nominate the next prime minister. If no party wins more than half of the total votes, a coalition will be required.
