Romania’s electoral body has rejected the candidacy of controversial far-right politician Diana Sosoaca in the presidential election rerun in May, but approved George Simion, the leader of the country’s most popular far-right party.

Russian presidential contender Calin Georgescu will challenge a decision to bar him from taking part in a rerun of the election in May, one of his advisers told Reuters on Monday.Georgescu submitted his presidential bid on Friday after allegations of Russian interference in his favour prompted Romania's Constitutional Court to cancel the original election in December.

Romania’s largest far-right party is scrambling to find a candidate after the independent front-runner it supported was barred from May’s presidential election.

The country’s electoral commission ruled on Sunday that Calin Georgescu, an outspoken critic of Ukraine and NATO, could not compete in the do-over election.

Romanian far-right populist Calin Georgescu has appealed the decision to bar him from running in the country’s presidential election rerun.

In his appeal to the court, Georgescu — whose original candidacy was allegedly boosted by a Russia-backed TikTok influence operation — insisted that his expulsion from the election do-over could permanently suppress his constitutional right to stand for election.

Diana Sosoaca, who was banned from the presidential election in November that was later annulled, will not be allowed to stand in the re-run.

Protests erupted in downtown Bucharest following the Central Electoral Bureau's decision to ban Russian-backed far-right politician Calin Georgescu from running in the upcoming re-run presidential elections.

Controversial Romanian politician Diana Sosoaca, who was barred by a top court from entering last year’s annulled presidential election, has filed her candidacy in an unlikely bid to enter in the May rerun.