Elections

So Basescu won. I'm pleased.

I watched the results on tv. Demonstrations in Bucharest. Up to 500 people in downtown Timisoara (which was severly exagerated by the Romanian media. I thought we had a riot scene but it was just a few people being overly enthusiastic about the results). I almost went out but midnight in December is too cold for leaving the comfort of your bed. The images on tv were great. A lot of cars were driving in Bucharest with the Romanian flag flying off the trunk. The best one was a car with a Romanian flag and EU flag. The car sped by, the flags flying straight out. I don't know why I liked that car as much as I did.

Until I went to bed, the results were neck and neck. Several news agencies were doing the tally and every result came back at 50%/50%. Oooh, exciting. Traditionally, those who vote for the opposition (Basescu) vote the last. Granted, Romania's next elected president won't exactly affect me as a person, but I was not rooting for Nastase.

The results were made official at 3:00 pm yesterday. Basescu. Try saying that ten times fast. "Bah-ses-cu-oo". If anything, Nastase ("Nah-stah-seh") has an easier name to pronounce, and I'm not even putting all the little squiggles the Romanians are so fond of on their names.

I found out that Nastase's nickname in the 90s was "Candy" and he has fought off allegations that he is gay. A Romanian journalist claims that he has a video featuring Nastase in a compromising position but this was never released to the media. Strangely enough, Nastase has been virulently opposed to Basescu's ideas about legalising same-sex marriage. I can't comment on this, but I can say that Romania has some of the ugliest politicians I have ever seen in my life. Nastase looks like he's had too much botox.

Nastase had a firm hold with the poorer regions of Romania (the south and east, especially) . Basescu wanted to appeal to the young, the urban, the intellectuals and the middle class. On a map showing all the administrative areas of Romania, most of the areas with big cities (Timisoara, Bucharest, Sibiu, Brasov, Alba-Iulia, Cluj-Napoca, etc) are all orange.

Walking home last night, I heard honking horns around Piata Unirii. I wondered if it was an anti-DA demonstration by the PSD or a victory DAnce. It was the latter, and I fought my way through the crowds. Close to one hundred people, from young kids to old grandmothers stood outside the party's building, waving flags, banners and screaming in joy. I've never gone that far when my chosen candidate won, but I did do a little victory dance with my co-workers when Paul Martin beat out Stephen Harper this summer.