Bucharest Mayor Nicușor Dan won the run-off in the most controversial presidential election in Romania’s post-communist history. According to the final results, the pro-EU, more progressive candidate secured 53.6 per cent—more than 6.1 million votes—against right-wing nationalist Alliance for the Unity of Romanians (AUR) candidate George Simion, who received 46.4 per cent, or over 5.3 million votes.

Voter turnout reached a record high of nearly 65 per cent, with over 11 million Romanians casting their ballots—including approximately 1.6 million from abroad. The generally higher turnout appears to have been one of the decisive factors in Dan’s victory, along with the votes of the one million Hungarians living in Romania, mostly in Transylvania.

As Hungarian Conservative reported earlier, while Simion could count on diaspora votes—of which he secured 55.86 per cent—the Hungarian minority could tip the balance in Dan’s favour in the second round. Owing to Simion’s history of anti-Hungarian rhetoric and actions, the Hungarian minority party, the Democratic Alliance of Hungarians in Romania (UDMR), endorsed Nicușor Dan in the run-off. Party president Hunor Kelemen called a Simion presidency ‘a threat to the Hungarian community.’ Simion previously described UDMR as a ‘hideous, chauvinistic creature’ and has asserted that there is no place for ethnic-based political parties in the country.

Hungarians Showed Strong Electoral Will

Voting patterns in Hungarian-majority counties in the first round, however, suggested that only between 7 and 17 per cent of ethnic Hungarians voted for Dan. These counties also reported turnout rates significantly below the national average.

During the campaign, Dan made several efforts to reach out to the Hungarian community, indicating that he would welcome UDMR into a potential new governing coalition, negotiations in which he intends to take part. The president-elect, who himself grew up in Transylvania, also wrote an open letter to Romanian Hungarians, stating that the future of Romania can only be built through respect for all ethnic communities. ‘Romanian–Hungarian relations must be built not on television, with scandals and hatred, but in the towns and villages where we live together,’ he wrote.

‘Harghita became the most pro-Dan region in the entire country’

According to Romanian Insider, Hungarians indeed turned out in significant numbers: Dan won in every Hungarian-majority county, including 84.42 per cent in Covasna (Kovászna), 90.78 per cent in Harghita (Hargita), and 67.02 per cent in Mureș (Maros). Interestingly, Harghita became the most pro-Dan region in the entire country—despite the Bucharest mayor having won only around 8 per cent of the vote there in the first round.

‘The high turnout of Transylvanian Hungarians in the final round of the presidential elections in Romania on Sunday shows that the Hungarian people of Transylvania understood the importance, the gravity, the dangers, and the opportunities of this election,’ Hunor Kelemen stressed on Sunday night.

Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbán reacted to the result in a post on X, stating that he is looking forward to working together with Dan on ‘strengthening the cooperation between Hungary and Romania’. During the heat of the campaign, one of Orbán’s speeches sparked major backlash among Romanian Hungarians, as it was interpreted—both by the domestic opposition and the international mainstream media—as an endorsement of Simion. Orbán later clarified his remarks, reiterating that ‘in matters of national policy, the interests of the Hungarian community in Transylvania are the guiding principle.’ He added that the Hungarian government had no intention of influencing the Romanian presidential election. ‘Together with Romania’s current and future leaders, we are working to advance the livelihood and preservation of the Hungarian community in Transylvania,’ he emphasized.

Simion Admits Defeat

Despite the significant impact of their votes on his victory, Dan did not mention the Hungarian community in his first speech following the announcement of the results. He thanked diaspora voters, Romanians living in Moldova and Bessarabia, but not those from Transylvania—his own homeland.

After the final results were published, George Simion acknowledged his defeat—a scenario that was not immediately clear, as he had claimed victory on social media following the release of exit polls. ‘I am the New President of Romania,’ he wrote on X. On election day, Simion also reported several instances of alleged electoral fraud, pointing to the presence of 1.8 million deceased individuals on the electoral register and warning they could be used to manipulate the vote. He also called for the urgent dispatch of additional ballot papers and extended voting hours at diaspora polling stations, citing shortages and long queues in several locations.

‘We will continue our fight for freedom and our great values along with other patriots, sovereignists, and conservatives all over the world,’ Simion said in a video message posted on X on Monday. ‘We may have lost a battle, but we will certainly not lose the war,’ he concluded.

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