In a desperate bid for votes, Romanian PM Marcel Ciolacu goes all-out populist, echoing conspiracy theories spewed by Russian propagandists, exploiting a gymnast’s heartbreak at the Olympics, and vowing to boycott the event

Prime Minister Marcel Ciolacu, a future presidential candidate, has crossed a red line that separates responsible leaders from populists who would do anything for a vote. The PSD (Social Democratic Party) leader took advantage of the disappointment of a gymnast deprived of her bronze medal after a questionable decision by the judges and announced that he would boycott the closing ceremony of the Paris Olympics, where he had the opportunity to discuss political matters with his counterparts in the interest of Romania. His public speech, copied from the pro-Russian Cozmin Gușă (a Romanian politician known for his pro-Russian stance), promotes the exact conspiratorial rhetoric that is so convenient for Russia: Romania is a victim of the great powers (read: the USA) who steal all our resources, even our Olympic bronze.

What Ciolacu wrote exactly in his social media message:

„I have decided not to attend the closing ceremony of the Paris Olympics, after the scandalous situation in gymnastics, where our athletes were treated in an absolutely dishonorable manner (…) Somewhere in the organization system of this competition, something is wrong. I remember very well how, during communism, the Russians would steal from us at the Olympics, and we would try to argue with them without much chance of winning. Today, I do not want to argue with anyone, I just choose to protest with my gesture against a flagrant injustice towards some Romanian women who have fully proven their worth.”

What Cozmin Gușă wrote:

„I remember how, at the 1980 Moscow Olympics, the Russians, our political leaders at the time, stole from Nadia (referring to Romanian gymnast Nadia Comăneci) in favor of one of their own Russian athletes, the competition and awarding were interrupted, and our people, led by Bella Karoly (Romanian gymnastics coach), made a monstrous scandal, televised for the billions of viewers who saw the fraud with their own eyes (…) It’s clear that we were more dignified under dictatorship when it came to national interest, today we have come to be humiliated and to seek mitigating circumstances in favor of the abuser.”

The speeches of Ciolacu and Gușă are almost identical. Romania is humiliated, robbed, looted; it is a matter of national honor to rise up and respond to the „dishonorable way” the West treats us.

This is the discourse you find in dozens, hundreds of Moscow’s useful idiots who fill social networks and television with the Kremlin’s propaganda ideas: Russia may not be a beacon of democracy, but the West is no different.

This is Russia’s stake. To show that the West is not morally superior, that everything is the same. As a result, any attempt to synchronize with the West is a wrong decision, and Romania should break away from the West and remain autarkic. Why would Russia benefit from such a rupture between Romania and the EU/NATO/USA? Because a lonely Romania, without allies, is much easier to influence politically and economically.

Why did Prime Minister Ciolacu cross this red line, which he had been careful not to overstep until now? The simplest explanation is for votes. The PSD leader is preparing to be the party’s presidential candidate and needs every available vote, especially in the second round, where there is a real chance he will face Mircea Geoană (a Romanian diplomat and politician). Ciolacu and his team of consultants are now systematically targeting the anti-Western electorate, captivated by figures like George Simion (leader of the Alliance for the Union of Romanians, AUR) and Diana Șoșoacă (a Romanian senator known for her nationalist and anti-EU views).

Ciolacu’s short-term political calculation seems correct: he winks at the conspiracists (see his meeting with Șoșoacă at the government where he kissed her three times on the cheek after she entered the European Parliament, thus legitimizing a profoundly anti-EU politician), flaunts his patriotism to grab AUR and SOS votes, and then returns to the sober attitude of a statesman if he wins the presidential election.

However, for the public interest, Ciolacu’s move can have disastrous consequences.

First, the PSD leader validates an anti-Western, conspiratorial, pro-Russian discourse that he himself has publicly criticized and disavowed in the past two years. Romania has reached a point where a significant part of society is infected with this virus carried by agents like Simion, Șoșoacă, Gușă, Romania TV, and Realitatea TV. We see around us the havoc wreaked by pro-Russian and anti-Western leaders in Hungary, Slovakia, Bulgaria, and North Macedonia – countries on the edge, ready to return to Putin’s orbit. Does Romania need another populist, conspiracist, validated to the maximum by the position of prime minister? No, it does not.

Second, Ciolacu shows that he is incapable of rising and remaining at the level of a statesman. Romanians voted for him in parliamentary elections to represent the public interest: stability, prosperity, and stronger anchoring in Western values. Attending the closing ceremony is a political gesture, an opportunity for networking with other prime ministers and presidents to discuss Romania’s state interests. How can you boycott such a high-level political event as a „punishment” for losing a medal, even if it is bronze?

Third, the prime minister’s logic is flawed and indicates problems of political discernment. Ciolacu suggests the existence of a global conspiracy to deprive Romania of a medal and give it to the Americans. He says that „in the organization system of this competition, something is wrong” and adds the story of the Russians who stole from us at the Olympics during communism. If we look at the medal standings, the USA is in first place, with 21 gold, 30 silver, and 28 bronze. Tied for gold medals with China, but far ahead of China and France in total medals – that is, the two standings that are made at the end of each edition of the Olympic Games. Statistics indicate that an additional bronze medal for the USA has almost no stake in the big game. Where then is this conspiracy, this „wrongness” that Ciolacu speaks of?

Either there was no error by the judges, as suggested by Nadia Comăneci (Romanian gymnast and Olympic gold medalist), or it was a simple judging error and nothing more – as constantly happens in sports. But from here to conspiracy is a long and ridiculous road. Just as ridiculous is Prime Minister Ciolacu’s attitude: a wannabe president who suddenly got upset with the Olympic village.

It is worth noting that this is the second time Marcel Ciolacu has used the emotion generated by sports to gain political capital. The first time was in Germany, at Euro 2024, when he attended two matches of the national football team. Then the move worked for him, the results were good, and the emotion was positive. Now, with the Olympics, it has turned out the opposite.