You could almost think that it is perfectly rational for a supposedly democratic country to bar a leading presidential candidate from appearing on the ballot if you read Monday's Reuters report, "Far-right candidate Calin Georgescu barred from Romania presidential election re-run."
Here is Reuters acting as if it is normal to destroy a democratic election in order to save it.
Romania's central election authority on Sunday barred far-right pro-Russian candidate Calin Georgescu from running in May's presidential election re-run, a decision likely to deepen a constitutional crisis in the European Union and NATO member.
The cancellation on December 6 of the presidential election due to allegations of Russian meddling in Georgescu's favour has thrust Romania to the heart of a dispute between the administration of U.S. President Donald Trump and European nations over how democratic values should be defined.
Yes, because the leading candidate in America, Trump, was also subjected to lawfare in an attempt to keep him off the ballot in several states, which helps explain his interest in the lawfare used in Romania to keep their leading candidate off the ballot.
In a detailed account published late on Sunday, the election authority said its decision was based on the Constitutional Court's move to cancel the election after Georgescu did not respect ballot regulations.
"It is inadmissible when rerunning the election to consider that the same person meets the conditions needed to accede to the presidency," the argument said.
Georgescu had been the surprise frontrunner in last year's ballot, and members of Trump's administration called its cancellation an example of European governments suppressing freedom of speech and political opponents.
Not just members of the Trump administration but most people with civic sensibilities would also judge it as a an example of extreme election interference.
Sunday's decision, which tech billionaire and Trump adviser Elon Musk called "crazy" on his social media platform X, risks deepening a rift between transatlantic allies that has already been shaken by the White House's shift in policy towards Ukraine.
While Musk and Vice President JD Vance have criticized the cancellation of the election, several European diplomats including German, French, Dutch and Spanish ambassadors have expressed support for the independence of Romanian courts.
So the Romanian courts can blatantly interfere in elections in a most undemocratic manner as long as they remain "independent?" These people want to lecture us about "democracy" and "voter suppression"?
