Surprises—but not really—in the first round of the presidential elections. George Simion (AUR) gets the most votes and will face off against either Nicușor Dan (Independent) or Crin Antonescu (PSD-PNL-UDMR Alliance), who are fighting to the last vote.
According to data from an exit poll conducted by Avangarde at 7:00 PM, George Simion managed to attract 30% of the vote, followed by Crin Antonescu and Nicușor Dan, each with 23%, and Victor Ponta (Independent) with 15%. Elena Lasconi (USR) only managed to convince 4% of the voters.
Another exit poll, conducted by CURS at 7:00 PM, shows George Simion was preferred by 33% of those who voted today, followed by Crin Antonescu with 22.90%, Nicușor Dan (20.90%), Victor Ponta (14.70%), and Elena Lasconi (4.7%).
The INSCOP poll also places George Simion in first for the presidential runoff, with 36.2% of today’s vote, followed in second place by the governing coalition’s candidate, Crin Antonescu – 21.5%. In third place is the independent Nicușor Dan, with 20.6%, followed by Victor Ponta with 17.1% and Elena Lasconi – 2.5%.
“I’m experienced enough to know that election victories are not decided by exit polls, and we cannot commit to anything based on them. We must wait to count every vote. When all votes have been counted and the results are officially in, we will talk about winners and losers,” said Crin Antonescu, the candidate of the PSD-PNL-UDMR alliance, after polls closed.
He went on to thank “everyone who gave me their vote. Thank you. I feel honored, and if this vote becomes a mandate to serve as President of Romania, I will carry it with the hope that they placed in me.”
In a recorded video message, George Simion said in his usual style: “I want to thank you, brothers and sisters from here and everywhere. Together we made history today. We are approaching an exceptional result, far beyond what the system’s TV stations are showing (…) Congratulations! You are the winners! Today, the Romanian people voted—today the Romanian people spoke. It’s time to be heard!”
“Democracy is about communities—their problems, their aspirations—and tonight I want to congratulate the voter communities of each of my opponents for the debate they carried out, especially on social media, which in my opinion was much more substantial than the one we politicians managed to produce,” said Nicușor Dan after the election process ended.
How many people voted
Voter turnout at polling stations within the country was 47,80 %. Including votes from abroad, total turnout was 53,21 %, almost 10 million voters (9.571.740). In November 2024, at the same time of day, the turnout in the country was 51.19%, with 9,219,366 Romanians voting.
