Romania far-right rides TikTok wave in election re-run

Authorities are keen to avoid a repeat of the uproar that followed the constitutional court's annulment of last year's vote results, after claims of Russian interference.

Authorities also reported a mass social media campaign in favour of far-right candidate Calin Georgescu, who won the first round.

Georgescu was barred from the re-run and now his ally George Simion, leader of the far-right AUR party, has taken the lead in the re-run, according to several opinion polls.

"We're going to show them that we can beat them," the holder of one active TikTok account under the name of adi.suveran, promoting Simion, told AFP.

"If Simion doesn't win, it's clear the elections have been rigged."

The Chinese-owned video-sharing app has nine million user accounts in Romania, which has a population of 19 million.
TikTok election measures
Under investigation by the European Commission, TikTok said in March that it removed a network of more than 27,000 fake accounts that promoted Georgescu and Simion's AUR party "in an attempt to manipulate Romanian election discourse".

The platform says it has also hired more Romanian-speaking content moderators to assess potentially misleading content ahead of the election.

Brussels welcomed TikTok's "cooperation" in the probe and the changes, including "better detection and labelling of political accounts".

The platform also added 120 experts to a Romanian election task force focusing on "covert influence campaigns and advertising integrity" and carried out a stress test to counter any potential threats.

TikTok, whose representatives were invited to Bucharest ahead of the election, also said it was in close contact with Romanian authorities and local institutions "via dedicated channels".

The centre-left government has implemented stricter rules to clearly designate political lobbying and confirm the legality of funding. Content can now be removed from platforms at the telecommunications regulator's request.

"I am convinced that we are better prepared," interim president Ilie Bolojan said, while warning of new hybrid attacks aiming "to divide the population".

Despite the changes, TikTok's algorithms still boost emotive and polarising messages, with Georgescu and Simion benefitting "from a disproportionate visibility," according to Madalina Botan, a senior lecturer at the National University of Political Science and Administration in Bucharest.

"In such an ecosystem, players who understand the logic of the platform and manage to create visually and emotionally appealing content have a considerable advantage, regardless of the veracity of the message being delivered," she said.
Romanian users 'radicalised'
Simion has been particularly effective at engaging with his TikTok audience, balancing behind-the-scenes content with personal family images, according to Raluca Radu, director of the journalism department at the University of Bucharest.

"He's been using the platform for a long time, he understands it, he knows what types of content to upload, he knows how to perform," Radu said, adding that Simion frequently expresses support for Georgescu to "legitimise himself".

Radu said she had not observed unusual algorithm movements this time.

Georgescu still looms large on TikTok -- he was propelled into the top 10 global trends on the platform in November, according to declassified intelligence documents.

In videos viewed thousands of times, his supporters long for his return, while suggesting the election re-run is a "farce" and "gross manipulation", AFP's digital investigation team found.

By contrast, more moderate candidates such as Bucharest mayor Nicusor Dan are often the target of criticism on TikTok, with their words ridiculed or set to humorous soundtracks or songs.

One recent video includes a mocking movie-style soundtrack and cricket sounds that pokes fun at Dan's hesitant delivery during a press conference, where he said: "Romania has some problems, and in my opinion, this presidential campaign can bring some solutions."

Dan said he was a victim of "an avalanche of new suspicious followers".

Old accounts that had previously carried pro-Georgescu propaganda –- some with millions of likes –- have turned pro-Russian and spread communist nostalgia and anti-establishment messages ahead of the May polls, according to an investigation by local media HotNews.

The probe found thousands of posts featuring fake messages from Russian President Vladimir Putin addressing Romanians, suggesting he could become the next Romanian president and "liberate" the country.

Radu said "a large part" of the electorate was "radicalised".

"As long as politicians refer to conspiracy theories, coups, the 'system' and the 'parallel state' in the public space, as long as they exchange toxic messages among themselves, the level of radicalisation will not decrease," Radu said.