here be an example of what passes for 'democracy' in europe. its quite similar to their 'free speech'; 

 

• Romania’s Constitutional Court annulled the first-round presidential election results after anti-establishment candidate Calin Georgescu’s surprise victory.
• A U.S. congressional investigation found the EU and Romanian authorities pressured social media platforms, via the Digital Services Act, to censor pro-Georgescu content.
• Officials cited “Russian disinformation” on platforms like TikTok as justification, despite internal platform assessments finding no evidence of a coordinated Russian operation.
• Following the annulment, Georgescu was arrested and barred from a new election, which was won by the establishment-favored candidate.
• The report frames the Romanian case as part of a broader EU pattern of using regulatory power to suppress conservative and populist political speech ahead of elections.

In a move that sent shockwaves through European politics, Romania’s 2024 presidential election was thrown into chaos after the nation’s Constitutional Court annulled first-round results and canceled the subsequent runoff. The court cited “significant irregularities,” including allegations of voter fraud and a foreign influence campaign on social media. The decision directly overturned the surprise victory of political outsider Calin Georgescu, a populist who advocated for a “Romania First” agenda, skepticism of continued support for Ukraine, and admiration for U.S. President-elect Donald Trump. While authorities framed the intervention as a necessary defense of electoral integrity against “Russian disinformation,” a new investigation from the U.S. House Judiciary Committee paints a starkly different picture: one of systematic, politically motivated censorship by European Union and national authorities to suppress a challenger to the political establishment..........more........