Questions were raised over the validity of the result after a candidate who polled in single digits before the first round of the election surged to a first-place finish.
Romania's top court has annulled the result of the first round of the country's presidential election, adding that the entire election process will have to be re-run. The second round had been due to be held on Sunday and voting is already underway in polling stations abroad. It would have pitted nationalist independent Calin Georgescu against pro-European Union reformist conservative Elena Lasconi.
The court had validated the first presidential round on Monday. Georgescu said on Friday that the court ruling was a "coup," according to a written statement given to broadcaster Realitatea TV. Lasconi also condemned the ruling and said the vote should have kept going, respecting the will of the Romanian people. "The constitutional court's decision is illegal, amoral and crushes the very essence of democracy, voting," she said.
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