Romania's ruling coalition keeps its hold[fr][de] 

After seeing exit polls on Sunday, PSD leader Mircea Geoana said that the results had confirmed the fact that PSD is the strongest political party in Romania. Geoana said the results had shown that Romanians are "more and more disappointed" by the way politics is conducted in Romania. 

After 95% of the vote had been counted, PSD was credited with 30.82%, an improvement on the 2007 by-elections held after the country's EU accession, when it secured 10 seats. Its coalition partner and main rival PDL obtained 29.75% and 10 seats, six seats short of its total in the 2007 poll. 

In the intervening period, legislative elections were held in Romania in November 2008, which ended up in a coalition government between former foes PDL and PSD. 

The results of other parties and political players are as follows: 

The National Liberal Party (PNL) of former Prime Minister Calin Popescu Tariceanu, now led by Crin Antonescu (ELDR-affiliated), has 14.53% and will obtain 4-6 seats, as it did at the 2007 by-elections held after the country's EU accession. 

The Democratic Union of Hungarians in Romania (UDMR, EPP-ED group-affiliated), won 9% and will get three seats, one up from 2007. 

Fraud and low turnout 

Cries of fraud abounded as Romania recorded the lowest turnout in its democratic history with 27.52%. The police identified and investigated dozens of cases of multiple voting. The association Pro Democratia, an NGO which has monitored every election in Romania so far, declared that "abstention became the detached winner of the European elections". Pro Democratia said the difference between urban and rural turnout (29% vs. 16%) had increased suspicions of electoral tourism having influenced the outcome. 

During the first EU elections in Romania in 2007, turnout was 29.47%. 

Norica Nicolai, first on the liberal (PNL) list for the European Parliament, said her party had suspected fraud. PNL President Crin Antonescu also alluded to multiple voting when he said last night: "I would like to thank all Romanians who only voted once." 

He added: "Together with those who went honestly to the ballots, we were alone in front of two parties who, although in power, announced themselves a lot of fraud and illegalities from morning to night." 

Exotics and glamour

The Greater Romania Party (PRM) of ultranationalist Corneliu Vadim Tudor obtained 8.68% of the ballot, winning two seats – one for its leader, and the other for George Becali, commonly known as Gigi Becali - a controversial Romanian businessman and politician (EurActiv 27/03/09) primarily known for his involvement in football. Becali claims he is a follower of the fascist Romanian Legionnaire Movement. PRM was not successful in the 2007 poll. 

"It is payback time for the Greater Romania Party after the huge electoral fraud of last year," its president Corneliu Vadim Tudor said on election night. 

For his part, Becali said he would like to become affiliated to the European People's Party along with his partner Corneliu Vadim Tudor, thus erasing PRM's extremist label. 

Elena Basescu, President Basescu's daughter who ran for election to the European Parliament as an independent candidate, obtained 4.22% and won an MEP seat, as the threshold for individual candidates is lower than for parties. 

During election night, Basescu returned to the PDL, the party she left before the campaign.

"It is time to close down my [campaign] headquarters and return to the party I grew up in," she said.

"Welcome back home to the place you never left", Romanian Prime Minister Emil Boc, the PDL president, told the president's daughter.