BUCHAREST, Romania, Nov 30, (AP):  Hundreds of protesters gathered in Bucharest after a far-right populist unexpectedly won the first round of a presidential race, plunging Romania into turmoil just days before the country holds parliamentary elections. "Better to be dead than a fascist,” one placard reads. Sunday's ballot will determine a new government and prime minister to lead the European Union and NATO member country.

However, the vote is sandwiched between the two rounds of the presidential race and is overshadowed by controversies and chaos following the outcome of the first vote. Despite polling at less than 10% before the first round, a far-right politician who has praised Romanian fascist leaders and Russian President Vladimir Putin won the most votes in the Nov 24 ballot.

Calin Georgescu is due to face reformist Elena Lasconi of the Save Romania Union party in a Dec. 8 runoff. "He’s pro-Russia, pro-Putin, and we, the people - and especially the young people - we are supporting democracy,” said Sebastian Marin, an 18-year-old student who attended a protest on Wednesday in the capital. "It’s really important for people to mobilize.” Georgescu's success, which many have attributed to his rapid rise in popularity on the social media platform TikTok, has triggered nightly protests throughout Romania by those who oppose his past remarks and view him as a threat to democracy.

According to a report by Expert Forum, a Bucharest-based think tank, Georgescu’s TikTok account has had an explosion which it said "appears sudden and artificial, similar to his polling results.” Without naming Georgescu, who declared zero campaign spending, Romania’s top defense body said on Thursday that "a presidential candidate benefited from massive exposure due to preferential treatment" granted by TikTok. Romania has become a "priority target for hostile actions” by Russia, it added.

The Kremlin denies it is meddling. The same day, the Constitutional Court requested a recount of all 9.4 million votes after a former presidential candidate who obtained 1%, lodged a complaint alleging the Save Romania Union had violated electoral laws against campaign activities on polling day. The Central Election Bureau approved the request and said scanned reports were due to be sent in by 10.00 p.m. Sunday. On Friday, the court postponed a decision until Monday on whether to annul the vote.