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	Podcast:		Talking Europe
	Episode:		Crucial elections in Poland and Romania: A populist backlash in Eastern Europe?
	Category:		News & Politics
	Duration:		00:12:27
	Publish Date:		2025-05-23 15:17:01
	Description:		Many EU leaders were undoubtedly relieved when the result of the Romanian presidential election was announced on the night of May 18. Nicusor Dan, who had campaigned on a platform of pro-Western stability, defeated the firebrand populist and Eurosceptic George Simion. Indeed, Dan achieved a stunning reversal, after heavily losing the first round. But Simion still won more than five million votes, or around 46 percent, which highlighted a deep fracture in Romanian society. Poland, which holds the second round of its presidential election on June 1, is similarly fractured. The hard-right Law and Justice party, well known for its run-ins with Brussels when it was in power, made a strong showing in the first round, with its preferred candidate Karol Nawrocki coming in only slightly behind the frontrunner, Rafal Trzaskowski. We look at the appeal of these anti-establishment forces in the former communist eastern bloc countries, with our panel of MEPs. (None of the MEPs from the “sovereigntist” camp that we contacted was available to take part.)
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