Călin Georgescu stunned Romania when he won the first round with 22.94% of the vote in Sunday's election, the electoral authority said. Center-right contender Elena Lasconi, leader of the opposition Save Romania Union, came second with 19.18%.

Opinion polls before the election had placed him well behind his main rivals, with his support in single figures. But he will now contest the run-off vote on December 8 with Lasconi.

According to former state secretary at Romania's foreign ministry, Stefan Popescu, “the recipe for success of Mr. Georgescu, the candidate ranked first, should not be surprising.”

“His program is simple, easy to understand for all Romanians, regardless of their education, food, water, energy. The valorization of internal resources, the need to make Romania a country that matters, and many references to the Orthodox religion.

“The lack of trust in mass media and official communication channels has led to the development of underground communication channels that have been completely ignored by parties and candidates, but exploited by Mr. Georgescu’s close campaign team,” he added.