The Romanian presidential elections – a “gold mine” still waiting to be mined

In here article, Prof. Alina Bârgăoanu examines the long-running Russian influence efforts that helped shape this outcome. The technical investigation was carried out with her team. The Findings: a digital influence network of more than 70 Facebook pages and 75 clickbait websites – linked via comment-layer tactics, powered by inauthentic or AI-generated accounts, and algorithmically amplified. The reach exceeded 28 million, far more than the number of Romanian-speaking users.