Nicusor Dan, a pro-European candidate and former Bucarest mayor, won the presidential elections in Romania with 55.1% of the national vote, according to a poll of 99.9%.

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Despite the lack of counting the vote of the diaspora, mainly favorable to the ultranationalist candidate George Simion, the difference of 890,000 votes in favor of Dan ensures his mathematical victory, given that the number of remaining votes is lower than this figure.

Thousands of people, mostly young, have gathered in downtown Bucharest in front of Dan’s campaign headquarters, waving European Union and Romanian flags to celebrate the victory, in a festive atmosphere with some people chanting “Europe, Europe” and “Nicusor, Nicusor.”

Dan also came out to greet the assembled crowd with a European Union and a Romanian flag and in an interview granted to the Antena 3 channel said that he would begin contacts to form a new Government as early as tomorrow.

The election day was marked by very high participation, allegations of fraud by Simion – rejected by the authorities – and new warnings from the Romanian government of indications of Russian interference in the electoral process.

Voter turnout reached almost 65%, which is two million more voters than in the first round on May 4 and reflects the high polarization in key elections for the future of Romania.

Simion, 38, arrived as the favorite, after winning almost 41% of the votes in the first round and achieving almost double the support of Dan.

The leader of the Alliance for the Union of Romanians (AUR) channeled popular discontent towards the political system and mobilized large rural and youth sectors with a nationalist and Eurosceptic discourse.

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