Thousands of people rallied in downtown Bucharest on Sunday in support of the mayor, Nicusor Dan, a centrist who faces a nationalist in the runoff of the Romanian presidential election.
People gathered outside the government offices in Victory Square a week ahead of the May 18 runoff which could see Romania move closer to Europe or loosen ties with Brussels and NATO.
“Think of all the citizens of Romania, because we need to rebuild the country. (…) It is about unity, about reconstruction, about hope and, starting May 19, to make the very Romania that Romanians in Romania… the diaspora, ..and in the Republic of Moldova that they and their families dreamed of,” the pro-European mayor told the crowd.
“We are coming together at a turning point for Romania, to show that we have resources of trust, courage and hope. We must make visible our common trust in justice, prosperity, honesty, in European values.
“This meeting is not about one person, but about what kind of country we want to be,” he told supporters.
Hi rival, George Simion, 38, who opposes military aid to Ukraine, tapped into voters’ anger with Romania’s political establishment, and corruption and mismanagement.
In the May 4 first round, he won 41% in the first round, double the score of Nicușor Dan, the centrist mayor of Bucharest, and remains the favorite to win the runoff on May 18.
Romania’s nationalist leader George Simion is a threat to the Hungarian community_ government leader
