Last month, the Constitutional Court annulled the results of the November 24 vote, which brought victory to 62-year-old Călin Georgescu in the first round, following allegations that Russia tried to influence the vote in the country bordering Ukraine.
Georgescu became famous overnight on TikTok, prompting a probe of the social media platform by the European Union. He called the cancellation of the vote a "formalised coup d'état".
On 10 January, protesters gathered outside the parliament building, which also houses the Constitutional Court, carrying Romanian flags and chanting "We voted, you stole from us" and "Give us back the second round".
They also held placards of Georgescu, who did not appear, although in a video message he called on his supporters to gather in front of the Constitutional Court and ask it to "urgently reconsider the decision that has thrown Romania into chaos".
On 10 January, his lawyers formally asked the court to reconsider its decision. He is also challenging the annulment before the European Court of Human Rights.
Another leader of the far right, George Simion of the Alliance for the Unification of Romanians (AUR) party, filed the same request together with the AUR MPs to the Constitutional Court to review the decision.
"We have been living in a dictatorship since 6 December. We are here to defend democracy," Simion told reporters.
Simion, 38, came fourth in the first round of the presidential election and then backed Georgescu in the second round.
AUR is planning another protest against the annulment of Sunday's election in Bucharest.
In parliamentary elections on 1 December, the far-right nationalist bloc tripled its 2020 result to 32% on rising anger over inflation and fears of war in neighbouring Ukraine.
Pro-European parties struck a deal late last year to form a government without the far-right.
The new ruling coalition announced earlier this week that it plans to hold new presidential elections on May 4.
Next week the government is expected to approve the calendar, which includes a second round on 18 May.
The ruling coalition's common candidate, Cryn Antonescu, 65, a former chairman of the Liberal Party, announced in a television interview over the weekend that he was "suspending" his candidacy, complaining of a lack of support from the parties.
Romania has been in crisis since the court annulled the presidential election after declassified presidential office intelligence documents listed "aggressive Russian hybrid actions", including cyber attacks, and massive promotion of social media in the run-up to the vote.
Georgescu, who used to be an admirer of Russian President Vladimir Putin, denies any ties to Moscow. | BGNES
