Romanian election favourite pledges to stop potential US troop withdrawal

FILE PHOTO: George Simion, leader of the opposition Alliance for Uniting Romanians (AUR), talks to media after submitting his candidacy for a repeat presidential election, in Bucharest, Romania, March 14, 2025. REUTERS/Andreea Campeanu/File Photo

BUCHAREST (Reuters) - Romanian hard-right opposition leader George Simion, the favourite to win a presidential election re-run, said he is the only candidate who could stop a potential withdrawal of U.S. troops from the country.

Romania, a European Union and NATO member,will repeatthe two-round election on May 4 and 18 after the Constitutional Court made the initial ballot in December void following accusations of Russian meddling, which Moscow denied.