LA clear victory of the mayor of Bucharest, the pro-European centrist Nicusor Dan, in the presidential election in Romania on Sunday May 18, was welcomed with all the more relief in Brussels, at the headquarters of the European Commission as in NATO, that the election of his opponent was perfectly plausible. George Simion, far -right nationalist candidate, had produced an unprecedented score in the first round, bringing together 41 % of the vote.
After starting by contesting the results in the evening, Mr. Simion ended up recognizing his defeat in view of the final figures for the count. With nearly 54 % of the votes for Nicusor Dan, Romania escapes the American scenario, a negation of results such as that orchestrated by Donald Trump in 2020. It also escapes the serious problems that the election of George Simion would have caused: tensions with the Hungarian minority, difficult relations with the European Union and its member countries, and the questioning of Ukraine country of the oriental flank of NATO. It is therefore very good news for Europe.
However, this must be tempered by the indisputable progression of the extreme right, not only in Romania, but in two other countries whose voters voted on Sunday: Poland and Portugal, in the east and the west of the European Union.
In Poland, the mayor of Varsovie, Rafal Trzaskowski, centrist and pro-European candidate, certainly came out in the first round of the presidential election with 31.3 % of the vote, but the gap that separates him from his main rival, Karol Nawrocki (29.5 %), candidate of the nationalist conservative party and justice (PIS), is much thinner Surveys. And, above all, the PIS is now overwhelmed on its right by a far -right party, Konfederacja, whose candidate, Slawomir Mentzen, obtained 14.8 % of the vote. If we add to the scores of MM. Nawrocki and Mentzen the 6.3 % of another far -right candidate, the anti -Semitic Grzegorz Braun, we obtain a block of 50 % of the votes, much higher than the scoring of the Center right candidate.
The Portuguese Parliament divided into three blocks
If the postponement of voice is not yet frozen, it is a concern that must strongly mobilize the team of Mr. Trzaskowski, supported by the Prime Minister, Donald Tusk, by the second round planned on 1er June. A victory of the nationalist candidate, too, would have important consequences for the European Union and Ukraine. The stake greatly exceeds the borders of Poland: the Conference of American Conservatives CPAC, led by the faithful of Donald Trump, organized for the first time in Poland, will take place on May 26 and 27, on the eve of the second round. The participation of the American vice-president, JD Vance, is put forward as possible in political circles in Warsaw.
Finally, in Portugal, if the Prime Minister of Center right, Luis Montenegro, can consider himself reinforced by the result of the legislative elections, since his party has improved his score (32.7 %) and gained seats in Parliament, he has no clear majority and must also deal with the rise of the Far Right Party Chega (22.6 %), which is the first Portuguese Socialist Party (23.4 %) opposition. These two parties now have the same number of deputies, in a parliament divided into three blocks which is reminiscent of the French situation. It is indeed a European dynamic – and an alarm signal.
Source: Lemonde