A surprise leading candidate marked this year's first round of Romanian Presidential elections that none of the polls predicted — Călin Georgescu, who was voted by over 2.1 million Romanians or 22.94 percent. Elena-Valerica Lasconi and Ion-Marcel Ciolacu had a very tight race, Lasconi winning in the end by a difference of 0.03 percent or 2,740 voters. Over 800 thousand voters or 8.7 percent of votes came from the diaspora, Georgescu's lead abroad was even more impressive, gaining 43.16 percent of votes, although being perceived as eurosceptic and anti-western. It was voted by the majority of Romanians in Germany, France, the UK, and other EU members. Due to the close call, a recounting of votes was announced, but the leaders for the second round stayed the same. However, on the sixth of December, the elections were annulled due to suspicions of foreign meddling in the democratic process. Thus, Romanians will have to restart the electoral campaign in 2019. 2025.