Reactions to the threats launched by the AUR leader

The statements of the AUR leader, George Simion, have sparked a real storm on the local political scene. The President of the Timiş County Council and of the Timiş PSD, Alfred Simonis, says that George Simion is being manipulated by the Kremlin: "George Simion continues to play the role of a puppet manipulated by the puppeteers from the Kremlin. With each passing day, Simion sinks into a dangerous and, at the same time, lamentable rhetorical chaos. What we saw last night is no longer politics, but a demonstration of incoherence, defiance of democracy and, moreover, fear of becoming insignificant." He mentioned that after George Simion admitted his defeat in the elections, he changed his mind and started talking about election fraud, without evidence: "After proclaiming himself president of the country, Simion returned to reality within a few hours, admitting to losing the elections. He changed his mind again and started to claim, without evidence, election fraud. A recipe taken directly from the Russian propaganda laboratories: discrediting the electoral process, political opponents and inciting hatred and revenge. It is dangerous rhetoric. Not only for democratic stability, but also for public safety. George Simion was not content with attacking state institutions, but moved on to direct violent threats against us, those who voted for Nicuşor Dan, against the press, against all those who disagree with him. Simion came to want to interfere even in the act of justice. To demand The withdrawal of charges against Calin Georgescu, who is under criminal investigation for several crimes against the Romanian state, is not a simple coincidence. It is proof that the one who lost the presidential elections is trampling on the law and undermining democracy". Alfred Simonis stressed that George Simion is starting to become irrelevant and that he knows that his image as the savior of the nation is starting to fall apart: "However, what Simion is trying to hide is a terrible fear: that he is starting to become irrelevant. Simion knows that his image as the savior of the nation is falling apart, that the members of the AUR and many of the party's voters have started to understand that they have been deceived. Conservative values, authentic nationalism, sovereignism have been hijacked by a leader who has lost his moral and political compass. The period of false prophets, George Simion, Calin Georgescu, is about to end".

• "Anti-democratic attitude"

The director of INSCOP, Remus Ştefureac, states that, in the context of one of the largest turnouts in the last 30 years and a difference of almost 1 million votes in favor of the winner, the result of the presidential elections in Romania is "a strong signal of democratic legitimacy". According to him, challenging "such evidence" demonstrates an "anti-democratic attitude", "anti-patriotic" and which "exclusively plays into the hands of Russian propaganda". The director of INSCOP compares the situation to that of the election of President Donald Trump in the US "with one of the largest turnouts, a massive victory in the Electoral College and a confirmed popular vote in his favor". "It is as if you doubt Donald Trump's victory, which is truly inept", states Ştefureac. "With one of the largest turnouts in the last 30 years and a margin of almost 1 million votes in favor of the winner, the result of the presidential elections in Romania is a strong signal of democratic legitimacy," said Remuş Ştefureac, director of INSCOP, on his Facebook page.

• Fifor calls for intervention from the authorities

Social Democrat Mihai Fifor called for intervention from the Romanian authorities after Simion's statements: "George Simion claims, absolutely irresponsibly, that on Sunday he avoided a "bloodbath' and that he will seek and find those who did not vote for him even in a snake hole. Such statements, coming from a candidate for the Presidency of Romania, party leader and sitting MP, are of exceptional gravity and must be treated as such by state institutions." Fifor claims that the statements "Not only evoke a climate of violence and terror, but constitute a genuine incitement to violence and destabilization. The open threats regarding the existence of "lists" with those who voted against and the suggestions of reprisals against them are not simple slips of the tongue - they are fascist and legionary practices, incompatible with any democratic norm. (...) Such practices, even at the level of political discourse, must stop! Romania cannot tolerate this kind of behavior."

• Fritz: Simion crossed a red line

USR interim leader Dominic Fritz stated that, by announcing that he would contest the election results at the Constitutional Court and the accusations launched, George Simion "crossed a red line today because he questioned democracy itself and the functioning of democracy in Romania, without any l of evidence, only with empty accusations, and he did this in extremely violent language".

Dominic Fritz also stated: "After the AUR parliamentarians went public and called Nicuşor Dan the "so-called elected president", they already questioned the legitimacy of the president, now George Simion has come out and announced that he will challenge these elections at the Constitutional Court. Normally we could say: well, it is his right to challenge if he thinks something was wrong, but if we look at this speech in more detail, then we realize that the situation is much more serious. George Simion speaks in several places of bloodshed, speaks of Călin Georgescu as the elected president of Romania, talks about 100 million euros with which he allegedly bought the elections in the Republic of Moldova, attacks Moldova, attacks France and in short says that these elections were fraudulent, demands the release of accused criminals, such as Bogdan Peşchir, who he says is a political prisoner, the man who illegally financed Călin Georgescu's campaign. Moreover, he threatens all those who do their job in the judiciary - "You can hide in the mouth of a snake and we will still find you", he says that he will create a parallel media world, his own ecosystem, that he effectively wants to break away from the general society". Fritz added: "He threatened Nicuşor Dan's voters and by doing so he continues to maintain an atmosphere of violence and pressure in society", Fritz added, showing that this is "a dangerous narrative". He stated that this is also "a marketing scheme", but a deeply anti-Romanian, anti-democratic and anti-patriotic one.

Read How, unfortunately, sovereignty is compromised: contesting the elections