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Don Jr. traveling to Romania before controversial election

Don Jr. traveling to Romania before controversial election

Axios09-04-2025
Donald Trump Jr. will travel to Romania later this month shortly before the country's presidential election is held after a months-long delay.
Why it matters: MAGA heavyweights, including Trump Jr., Vice President Vance and Elon Musk erupted after Romania's top court annulled the first round of the country's presidential election over worries of Russian meddling — lambasting it as evidence that European countries are silencing the right.
Vance in particular has argued European elites pretend to care about democracy while ignoring the will of their voters, if those voters happen to choose "extreme" candidates.
Catch up quick: Romanian government intelligence indicated that Moscow ran digital influence operations to benefit ultranationalist candidate Călin Georgescu, who had praised Russian strongman Vladimir Putin and won the election's first round.
Trump Jr. slammed the decision at the time as "another Soros/Marxist attempt at rigging the outcome & denying the will of the people," referencing Democratic megadonor George Soros.
The latest: The new first round of voting will be held on May 4, with a runoff penciled in for May 18. Trump Jr. is visiting on April 28.
The Romanian Constitutional Court last month barred Georgescu from running.
Zoom in: Trump is traveling to Romania to attend Trump Business Vision 2025, a business event, as part of a speaking tour organized by Salem Media, according to a source familiar with the matter.
The person said Trump Jr. will not meet with government officials publicly or privately.
Trump Jr.'s tour will also take him to Bulgaria, the Czech Republic, Hungary, Serbia and Slovakia.
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