Recount order, TikTok claims throw Romania election into chaos

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00:00A recount has been ordered in Romania's election amid growing controversy.

00:03The pro-Russian candidate, Caolin Djorgescu, finished top of the first round of voting.

00:08His success has been put down to the social media platform TikTok.

00:12And an intelligence service is raising questions.

00:16Concerns over Russian manipulation of the democratic process

00:20were expressed well before voting day.

00:22Djorgescu is, of course, due to face the centrist contender Elena Lascuni

00:26in a runoff on December 8th.

00:28But now the recounter is announced.

00:30Meanwhile, the parliamentary election is scheduled for Sunday.

00:32Let's begin for analysis of the situation and essential context.

00:36Oana Popescu-Zamfira joining us live from Bucharest.

00:40Oana, thank you very much for being with us here on France 24.

00:43We appreciate your time.

00:44This role of TikTok, give us a sense about how

00:47it has played a key part in this election so far.

00:51Hi, thank you for having me.

00:53I think that is still a matter of investigation

00:57because on the one hand, we may be dealing with an organic phenomenon,

01:01which is just new as social media networks

01:06are playing an ever more important role in our lives.

01:10So the particular thing about this campaign

01:14is that the candidate in quotes has not campaigned

01:19on mainstream media or grassroots door to door.

01:23We know virtually nothing about his team

01:29or even any campaign headquarters.

01:33So he's been completely non-transparent.

01:35And all we know is his social media TikTok persona,

01:39not really the profile of the man himself,

01:44but only what we see on TikTok.

01:47Now, this is the potentially organic part

01:50where I think we're all a little bit struck

01:53by something that's new

01:55and where social media is more impactful than before.

02:00On top of that, however, there are suspicions

02:03that this kind of visibility

02:05that the candidate was able to achieve in a very short time,

02:09which would have been very costly.

02:12It would have required significant strategizing and effort.

02:16That might actually be the result of foreign interference,

02:19especially since he has declared zero expenses

02:25from the money that is allocated by the state.

02:28So the budget that would be transparent.

02:31Hence suspicions raised by the National Security Council today

02:36that he may have been benefiting

02:39from illegal visibility on TikTok.

02:43So maybe coordinated inauthentic behaviour, as it is called.

02:48So Ceaușescu could have used a very clever,

02:53indulged in a very clever use of social media,

02:56or it could have been Russian manipulation

02:58or maybe a combination of the two.

03:00Is that what we're getting at?

03:02Highly unlikely that the former alone

03:06would have got him to the kind of visibility

03:08and percentages that he got.

03:11Even data analysts and social media experts

03:14and sociologists cannot compute an explanation,

03:18a coherent explanation,

03:19where smart use of social media alone

03:23would have got him here.

03:25There is going to be a recount, Oana.

03:28A recount.

03:29Will that satisfy people?

03:32Probably not.

03:33Actually, I think there's a growing perception.

03:37And this time, because of the opacity

03:40and the lack of communication of state institutions

03:43over the past few days,

03:45that maybe now the government

03:48is trying to fix a potential democratic,

03:52an undemocratic, sorry, drift of the country

03:56through undemocratic means.

03:58It has not been very convincing

04:00that the constitutional court

04:02took this unprecedented step

04:04of ordering a total recount of votes in record time.

04:08If that shows a different result than the first time,

04:13obviously, this would raise further doubt.

04:17I think it would further decrease

04:20the public's confidence in institutions.

04:23However, obviously, it would be a healthy process

04:26at the end of the day

04:27if there's something real behind it.

04:30So now I think we're in very confusing territory

04:33where some legitimate steps

04:36might actually be met

04:38with a high level of suspicion

04:40given the general climate of polarisation

04:45and lack of confidence in the process itself.

04:48We hear exactly what you're saying, Oana.

04:51And of course, there is a second round

04:52of the presidential election to come

04:53on December the 8th, if I'm not mistaken.

04:56And before that, a parliamentary election.

04:58So all this adding to the sense, I suppose,

05:01of doubt about the veracity of what happens

05:04and about the safety of what happens.

05:07Absolutely.

05:09Ideally, state institutions would have provided,

05:13or at least would provide now,

05:16even at this late hour, more clarity

05:20because lacking that, we have a deepening climate

05:26of, like I said, confusion and polarisation.

05:30Part of society feels that the system

05:33might now be coalescing to stop the ascent

05:37of this independent candidate.

05:39And then they're going to mobilise

05:40to vote even more sovereignist

05:44for the parliamentary elections

05:46and to vote for him in the second round

05:48or in a rerun of the first round,

05:51if that is the case,

05:52because that is still on the table.

05:55The other part of society

05:56is getting more and more mobilised

05:58against the possibility of this happening

06:01and against the possibility of Romania

06:04moving in a Viktor Orbán-Hungary kind of direction.

06:09So I think what we're seeing

06:11is heightened divisions within society

06:16and a lot of suspicion on all sides.

06:20Oana, Popescu, Zamfir,

06:23thank you for joining us from Bucharest

06:26from the Global Focus Centre.

06:28Oana, thanks for being with us.

06:29We, of course, are watching for all developments.

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