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George Simion won the first round of Romania's presidential election re-run on Sunday, Reuters reported citing near final results.
Simion is described by the media as a ‘hard-right eurosceptic.’
Ballots from nearly 99.6% of voting stations showed Bucharest Mayor Nicusor Dan, 55, was in second place at around 21%, behind Simion's 40.6%. They will meet in a runoff on May 18.
"This is not just an electoral victory, it is a victory of Romanian dignity. It is the victory of those who have not lost hope, of those who still believe in Romania, a free, respected, sovereign country," Simion said, according to Reuters.
Simion, 38, opposes military aid to neighbouring Ukraine, is critical of the EU leadership and says he is aligned with the U.S. president's Make America Great Again movement.
"We are a Trumpist party which will govern Romania and which will make Romania a strong partner in NATO and a strong ally of the United States," Simion told foreign media shortly before polling stations closed, according to Reuters.
Dan, an independent running on an anti-corruption platform, overtook former senator Crin Antonescu, 65, a centrist candidate backed by the three parties in the pro-western coalition government for his spot in the runoff.
"Eyes on the West, I believe that this is what the campaign should be about, about keeping the Western direction in Romania," Dan told reporters on Sunday evening.
"... (and) understandably explaining to the people at home the shortcomings we had in our relations with these institutions. They came rather from our own fault in not being active and prepared."
Observers said he would struggle to beat Simion in the run-off more than Antonescu due to rivalries between him and mainstream parties that make it harder for voters to switch. Many in the ruling Social Democrat and Liberal parties shared more beliefs with Simion than Dan, they said.
Victor Ponta, a former leftist prime minister who has shifted to conservative nationalist politics, could play a pivotal role following Sunday's vote after finishing in fourth place with 1.22 million votes, and could leverage his electoral strength to become a kingmaker in the political landscape.
