The Constitutional Court of Romania (CCR) on May 22 rejected a request to annul the presidential election filed by far-right candidate George Simion, who alleged that authorities in Moldova and France interfered with the electoral process.

Independent candidate Nicusor Dan, who had served as mayor of Bucharest before the elections, won the May 18 runoff against Simion with 53.6% of the votes.

“Following deliberations, the Constitutional Court, unanimously, rejected the request to annul the elections as unfounded,” according to a CCR note. The reasoning behind the ruling will be published in the official journal, but the unanimity confirms expectations that no evidence was provided in support of the allegations.

Consequently, the Constitutional Court has declared the presidential elections valid. Romania thus completes the rerun of the presidential elections after the annulment of the first ballot in November last year.

On May 21, the court confirmed it had received a document titled “Request for annulment of the elections” on the evening of May 20. Legal experts noted the court's wording may indicate procedural issues with the submission, potentially due to a lack of an original signature, which could render the request inadmissible.

The request was submitted by Simion, who announced his challenge in a video message, claiming electoral manipulation and foreign interference.

Simion stated he was challenging Dan’s election victory "for exactly the same reasons for which they [the CCR] annulled the elections in December." The Constitutional Court had annulled the previous election held in November-December 2024, citing foreign interference.

In his May 20 remarks, Simion alleged that Moldovan authorities spent €100mn to influence dual citizens’ votes in favour of Dan. The government in Chișinău rejected these accusations as unfounded.

Simion also accused the French foreign intelligence service (DGSE) of pressuring Telegram founder Pavel Durov to restrict the online campaigns of Romania’s conservative political forces. While Durov has previously claimed to have received requests from French authorities, the French government denied any such interference. In any case, Durov claims Telegram did not follow DGSE's request, meaning that the electoral process was not affected.

Romania’s Permanent Electoral Authority (AEP) confirmed on May 21 that the 2025 presidential elections were conducted in a climate of integrity, fairness and transparency. The authority also rejected recent online accusations made by a losing candidate as "completely false and unfounded".

In a statement issued on May 21, the AEP said that the electoral process adhered to the highest European and international standards, citing comprehensive security measures and the use of advanced information technology systems. A blockchain-based solution was also implemented, which the AEP said made interference with data flows "impossible".

The authority criticised what it described as the dissemination of false information aimed at undermining public trust in democratic processes. It warned that such disinformation tactics pose a threat to electoral integrity.