One of the two criminal cases initiated by prosecutors against former Romanian presidential candidate Călin Georgescu, concerning alleged fascist, far-right, racist and xenophobic propaganda, has passed the preliminary chamber stage at the Bucharest Court, clearing the way for public hearings to begin. The second case, which concerns an alleged attempted coup d’état, remains in the preliminary procedure, a phase meant to verify whether the evidence was lawfully gathered and submitted by prosecutors.
Georgescu ranked first in the first round of the presidential election held in November 2024, following a rapid and highly targeted social media campaign that, according to Romania’s Supreme Council of National Defence (CSAT), relied on bot networks prepared years in advance by entities linked to Russia. After the Constitutional Court (CCR) ordered a full rerun of the electoral process, Georgescu was banned from running again, citing his radical rhetoric.
In the case that has now cleared the preliminary stage, Georgescu is being prosecuted for “publicly promoting the cult of persons guilty of crimes of genocide, crimes against humanity and war crimes, as well as for publicly promoting fascist, legionary, racist or xenophobic ideas, concepts or doctrines, in a continuous form (five material acts)”.
According to the indictment, between June 16, 2020 and May 16, 2025, on multiple occasions (June 16, 2020; September 2020; October 2, 2021; September 1, 2024; and May 16, 2025), the defendant publicly promoted, through various means, fascist, legionary and xenophobic ideas, concepts and doctrines.
Prosecutors accuse Georgescu of making public calls for the “regeneration and rebirth of the nation” through palingenesis – the creation of a “new man” under the framework of Orthodox Christian mysticism – implicitly accepting the use of violence, and advocating for the emergence of a charismatic, predestined and authoritarian leader capable of implementing this process.
He is also charged with glorifying Marshal Ion Antonescu, who was definitively convicted of war crimes. According to investigators, Georgescu praised Antonescu as a national hero and closely imitated not only his words but also his gestures and tone of voice. The indictment further notes that Georgescu gave the legionary salute during a speech delivered to protesters opposing coronavirus-related restrictions, at a rally held in University Square in Bucharest on October 2, 2021.
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