The annulment of Romania's presidential election on grounds of procedural irregularities and a Russian-backed influence campaign might further politically advantage anti-establishment parties in the election re-run, undermine public trust in the country's institutions and create a precedent for controversial election results in other parts of Europe. On Dec. 6, Romania's Constitutional Court annulled the first round of the presidential election, citing procedural irregularities and evidence of a Russian-backed online influence campaign supporting far-right independent candidate Calin Georgescu, who won the most votes. The prosecutor general's office is also reportedly considering opening criminal investigations into Georgescu's campaign. Georgescu, who unexpectedly secured 23% of the vote in the first round of the presidential election on Nov. 24 despite low polling during the campaign, was set to face off against the center-right Save Romania Union's liberal candidate Elena Lasconi, who received 19.3%, in the second round originally scheduled for Dec. 8. The annulment...
