Romania's top court orders recount in presidential election, delaying runoff

Romania's top court has ordered a recount of the presidential election following claims of fraud. This decision delays the runoff between ultranationalist Călin Georgescu and liberal Elena Lasconi, originally scheduled for December 8. Two candidates from the first round requested the court to nullify the results, alleging illegal vote transfers and undisclosed campaign financing. One plaintiff, Cristian Terheș, claimed votes for a withdrawn candidate were improperly counted for Lasconi. The court's recount order stems from these allegations, while it dismissed another plaintiff's complaint as untimely. The election authority has also reported Georgescu's campaign for lacking clear financing sources.