The cancellation of the east European nation’s presidential election in December was proof, in the eyes of US Vice President JD Vance, that European democracy is under threat. The vote was annulled by Romania’s Constitutional Court,

Owner of social media giant X, Elon Musk, has criticised Romania’s reported plans to suspend TikTok. In a tweet on his X account on Monday, Musk labelled the move an attempt at censorship. “You can tell who the bad guys are by who is demanding censorship,

Calin Georgescu, the far-right frontrunner in Romania’s presidential vote, has been barred from running in May’s election, in an explosive decision that sparked violence on the streets of Bucharest and came despite pressure from Washington to “listen” to voters’ demands.

For a second time, Romania’s right-wing candidate for president has been tossed off the ballot, igniting protests around the country and increasing a crisis in a nation currently being run by an interim president.

The country’s electoral commission ruled on Sunday that Calin Georgescu, an outspoken critic of Ukraine and NATO, could not compete in the do-over election.

Elon Musk, leader of the US Department of Government Effectiveness, DOGE, has reacted to Romania’s Central Electoral Bureau, BEC, decision to ban Călin Georgescu from running in the presidential, calling the move ‘crazy.