A far-right populist shocks Romania by heading into the presidential runoff

BUCHAREST, Romania — Romania is reeling after a little-known, far-right populist secured the first round in the presidential election, beating the incumbent prime minister.

Calin Georgescu, who ran independently, will face reformist Elena Lasconi in a Dec. 8. runoff after most local surveys predicted he would win less than 10% of the vote. Georgescu, 62, was ahead after nearly all ballots were counted with around 22.95%.

According to local media, Georgescu in the past has praised Russian President Vladimir Putin as ''a man who loves his country'' and called Ukraine ''an invented state.'' He has also sparked controversy for describing Romanian fascist and nationalist leaders from the 1930s and 1940s as national heroes.

Lasconi, of the progressive Save Romania Union party, or USR, followed with 19.17%. She beat by a slim margin incumbent Prime Minister Marcel Ciolacu of the Social Democratic Party, or PSD, who stood at 19.15%.

Lasconi on Monday warned that Romania is now in ''a historical confrontation between preserving Romania's young democracy … and those who want to return Romania to the Russian sphere of influence.''

She added: ''Let us be very clear, Calin Georgescu is an open admirer of Vladimir Putin. He is open against NATO and the European Union … He is for Romania's isolation, which he calls neutrality ... And without NATO we are at the mercy of Russia.''

Georgescu on Monday denied charges of being an extremist as ''false, totally fake'' and said he is ''completely dedicated'' to the Romanian people. ''We remain directly linked to European values, but we must find our (own) values,'' he said. ''I'm not an extremist, I'm not a fascist, I'm a Romanian who loves his country.''

It is the first time in Romania's 35-year post-communist history that the country's most powerful party, the PSD, doesn't have a candidate in the second round of a presidential race, underscoring voters' anti-establishment sentiment. Ciolacu's shocking defeat prompted him to submit his resignation as party leader on Monday.

After polls closed on Sunday, the Central Election Bureau said 9.4 million people — about 52.5% of eligible voters — had cast ballots. Georgescu won 43.3% of the vote in Romania's large diaspora, while Lasconi got 26.8%.

Romania's president serves a five-year term in the European Union and NATO member country and has significant decision-making powers in areas such as national security, foreign policy and judicial appointments.

According to his website, Georgescu holds a doctorate in pedology, a branch of soil science, and held positions in Romania's environment ministry in the 1990s. Between 1999 and 2012, he was a representative for Romania on the national committee of the United Nations Environment Program.

His campaign positions included supporting farmers, reducing import dependence and ramping up local energy and food production.

Lasconi, a former journalist, told The Associated Press ahead of the vote that she saw corruption as one of Romania's biggest problems and expressed support for increased defense spending and continued aid to Ukraine.

If she wins the final vote, she will be the first female president in Romania's history.