A panel from the Bucharest Court of Appeal rejected on Tuesday, as unfounded, the challenge filed by Calin Georgescu’s lawyers against the judge who is handling the trial against the annulment of the presidential election.

In this context, judge Cristina Ardeleanu is due to rule on the merits of the trial on Tuesday.

Georgescu’s lawyers requested, on Monday, the dismissal from this case of judge Cristina Ardeleanu, on the grounds that she would not be impartial, because she is the wife of a prosecutor who works at the National Anticorruption Directorate (DNA).

The lawyers also complained that the judge had pre-empted the trial.

„Be the lioness who defends the Romanian people!” Georgescu told the judge.

Calin Georgescu and the Coalition for the Rule of Law sued the Central Electoral Bureau (BEC) and several other institutions: the Ministry of Defence, the Defence Staff, the government, the Prosecutor’s Office attached to the high Court of Cassation and Justice, the Constitutional Court, the Romanian Intelligence Service (SRI), and also president Klaus Iohannis and former presidential candidate Elena Lasconi.

The file mainly refers to the annulment of two decisions taken by BEC annulling the entire electoral process and deciding to resume presidential election from scratch, based on a decision of the Constitutional Court.

On December 6, the Constitutional Court annulled the results of the first round of the presidential election won by Calin Georgescu based on documents declassified by the Supreme Council for Country Defence (CSAT), received from the SRI, the Foreign Intelligence Service, the Ministry of Interior (MAI) and the Special Telecommunications Service.

The declassified documents showed that Georgescu broke the electoral law by declaring zero funds spent during his electoral campaign with the Permanent Electoral Authority, while the SRI and MAI found that his campaign was financed by Bogdan Peschir with one million euros. moreover, the same declassified documents revealed cyberattacks by a foreign state against IT&C infrastructure supporting the electoral process and that Romania was a target for aggressive hybrid actions by Russia.

According to SIE, Romania „became a priority for the hostile actions of Russia, in the context of an increasing interest in Kremlin in influencing (at least) the mood and agenda in the Romanian society during the elections.” These actions were actions of propaganda and disinformation, supporting Euro-skeptical candidates and nursing anti-system movement, including through „their involvement in protests shaping the public agenda,” encouraging the dissatisfaction/provoking emotional reactions among the population, in order to put pressure on the authorities to reduce/stop the support for Ukraine.

AGERPRES