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For nearly two decades, Russian President Vladimir Putin has used election interference as a weapon to reshape the global order in his favor. From his meddling in the 2016 U.S. presidential election to his support for Brexit and far-right movements across Europe, the Russian dictator has worked to destabilize the West. A counterpunch has come from an unlikely quarter: Romania.
The country's Constitutional Court on Friday annulled the Nov. 24 first round of presidential elections due to evidence of Russian interference, taking a stand where other affected countries have been flailing.
The immediate result is that the second and final round of the election, which had been scheduled for Sunday, will be cancelled. In that round, far-right pro-Putin candidate Calin Georgescu was to have faced the liberal candidate, Elena Lasconi.
There is mounting evidence that Georgescu, who came out of nowhere to place first with 22 percent in the first round, has been massively assisted by a last-minute TikTok campaign featuring 5,000 accounts and about 50 million impressions and paid for—according to U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken—by Russia.
Why? Well, that's because the anti-vaxxer Georgescu, who says he's met aliens and denies the moon landing took place, hates NATO and the European Union in addition to his fanboying of Putin. This, despite Russia's history of bullying and oppression of Romania. The country is just now recovering from the economic devastation caused by the Communist regime.
There is a valid criticism of the court's decision: Lasconi had been expected to win, meaning that Romania's membership in the European Union and NATO would remain assured. But either way, this is the most dramatic pushback against the Russian election interference that appears to have become a bug—or perhaps a feature—of modern politics.
Putin thrives on disunity. His support for nationalist leaders and causes across Europe is not ideological—it's strategic. Though some bristle at the claim, Putin wanted President-elect Donald Trump to win because he knows that the United States will be weaker if led by an immoral and corrupt disruptor who hates his own intelligence community, will replace military leaders with toadies, and will gut the federal budget, impoverishing multitudes.
By boosting far-right and populist candidates in Europe, Putin seeks to weaken the European Union, NATO, and the broader post-World War II liberal order. He understands that a fractured Europe is far less capable of standing up to Russian aggression, whether it be in Ukraine, Moldova, or the Baltic states. It is a way for Putin to Make Russia Great Again.
Nationalists, by their very nature, prioritize sovereignty over cooperation. They challenge EU mandates, strain multilateral alliances, and sow mistrust among member states. For Putin, this fragmentation is ideal. It allows Russia to exploit divisions, negotiate with isolated states rather than unified blocs, and push back against the influence of Western democracies.
Romania, a strategic NATO member, has been a bulwark against Russian expansionism, and its role as a conduit for aid to Ukraine made it a prime target for Kremlin interference.
"Romania is the first country to take a stand against an insanity that has affected America and Western Europe as well," said Ana Florea Harrison, a veteran Romanian journalist. "While this is a huge disruption, I think it was about time for someone to tell Putin that enough is enough and that we will not be fooled."
For years, democracies have been reactive, scrambling to address the consequences of Russian meddling after the fact. Brexit, the election of Trump, and the rise of nationalist movements across Europe were not met with sufficient pushback. Western leaders failed to recognize a sustained effort to destabilize the global order.
The problem, of course, is that Putin will soon have a friend in the White House. It is no coincidence that Trump and Putin share a common disdain for multilateral institutions. Trump's America First rhetoric mirrors the nationalist ethos Putin seeks to cultivate in Europe. Both view alliances like NATO as constraints rather than assets. Both benefit from a world in which liberal democracies are too divided to act collectively.
That's why in 2016, Russia used a sophisticated campaign of hacking, disinformation, and propaganda to sway the U.S. election in Trump's favor. The Mueller Report and subsequent investigations have confirmed this interference, even if they stopped short of proving direct collusion.
Now the stakes are even higher. A second Trump term will likely mean the withdrawal of U.S. support for Ukraine, a weakening of NATO, and a retreat from America's role as the leader of the free world. For Putin, this is a dream scenario—one that allows Russia to cement its influence in Eastern Europe and beyond.
A few things can be done:
- Enhanced International Cooperation: Democracies must share intelligence, coordinate responses, and establish norms for addressing election interference.
- Social Media Accountability: Platforms like TikTok and Telegram must be held responsible for the role they play in spreading disinformation. This includes greater transparency, stricter content moderation, and penalties for non-compliance.
- Public Awareness Campaigns: Voters need to be educated about the tactics used by foreign powers to manipulate elections. Transparency is the best defense against disinformation.
This is a watershed moment that underscores the need for democracies to defend their institutions with vigor and resolve. It is a battle of the liberal world order against a global criminal mafia.
Dan Perry is the former Cairo-based Middle East editor and London-based Europe/Africa editor of the Associated Press, the former chairman of the Foreign Press Association in Jerusalem and the author of two books. Follow him at danperry.substack.com.
The views expressed in this article are the writer's own.
