ARGUMENT: TACKLING ELECTION INTERFERENCERomania, Foreign Election Interference, and a Dangerous U.S. Retreat
The Romanian election is but one example of recent foreign election interference incidents. The Russian interference in 2016 U.S. election led Congress, on bipartisan basis, and the relevant agencies in the executive branch, to make many changes to address this threat, but under the new administration, “the U.S. is now moving full steam ahead to completely destroy its defenses against that threat,” Katie Kedian writes. All of the positive U.S. government developments “have been dismantled or severely downgraded,” leaving “the U.S. public less informed and less safe from foreign interference.”
On Sunday, 18 May, the citizens of Romania, will elect a new president. Romania has been a NATO member since 2004, an unwavering ally for Ukraine, and a strong voice against Russian aggression. The result of the election will thus have consequences well beyond the country’s borders.
Katie Kedian writes in Lawfare that voters will head to the polls to choose between a right-wing nationalist who has promised to “Make Romania Great Again” and a pro-Western, centrist candidate who has said the election is a choice “between a democratic, stable and respected Romania in Europe—and a dangerous path of isolation, populism and defiance of the rule of law.”
Kedian continues:
The candidates may sound typical for today’s Europe; however, the election has been anything but, thanks in part to a controversial move by the Romanian Supreme Court to declare an initial round of voting illegitimate over concerns of Russian meddling. Though the investigation is ongoing, the saga of the annulled election offers a cautionary tale for democratic countries grappling with foreign election interference. The Romanian experience underscores the need for mechanisms that address the aftermath of foreign election interference, as well as mechanisms that bolster citizens’ individual defenses against such interference well before it happens. It also underscores the folly of the direction the U.S. is now taking with respect to this ongoing threat.
The Romanian Election and Evidence of Russian Interference
The first round of voting initially took place on Nov. 24, 2024, but no candidate received the requisite 50 percent of votes necessary to win. Per Romanian election rules, the top two candidates headed to a run-off election slated for Dec. 8. The top vote getter, with 22.9 percent of the vote, was Călin Georgescu, a far-right, pro-Russia, anti-NATO candidate who has called Ukraine “an invented state.” He was set to face off against Elena Lasconi, a former war correspondent who supports continued aid for Ukraine. On Dec. 6, two days before the scheduled run off, the Romanian Supreme Court issued an unprecedented decision annulling the Nov. 24 results based on concerns about the integrity of those results.
