BROD Observational Snapshot Romanian Presidential Elections Controversy – The View from Facebook December 8th-15th, 2024

Last modified by Admin on 2026/05/27 16:20

This analysis focuses on the narratives discovered in over 11,000 available Facebook posts accessed through Meta’s content library surrounding Presidential candidate Călin Georgescu, between December 8-15, 2024. The discourse reveals an increasingly polarized landscape involving both supporters and detractors, shaped by key themes and allegations.

By Keith Peter Kiely, Scientific Co-ordinator BROD & Experience Researcher, GATE Institute

Co -Funded by the European Union. Views and opinions expressed are however those of the author(s) only and do not necessarily reflect those of the European Union or DIGITAL-2021-TRUST-01. Neither the European Union nor the granting authority can be held responsible for them.

In 2026, Bulgaria will hold a series of elections - early parliamentary elections and regular presidential elections. The dates are not yet known, but from now on, we can say what narratives may emerge, and this initial list can serve as a step towards disarming them or, in other words, as a prebunking tool.

The narratives that we could expect to emerge during the year are often well-known. Here we use previous fact-checks and narrative reports, made mainly by EDMO and its hubs, and by other approved fact-checking organizations. [+]

As Bulgaria heads into its ninth general election since 2021 the country faces sustained Russian information manipulation pressure compounded by a deeply embedded domestic amplification ecosystem.

This report provides an anticipatory threat assessment for the April and November 2026 votes, drawing on CSD’s extensive Kremlin Playbook research and methodology, network and algorithmic analysis, and narrative monitoring. It maps the architecture of manipulation operating in the Bulgarian information space, identifies the irregular warfare narrative pressure points most likely to be exploited during the campaign, and outlines actionable recommendations – grounded in the European Digital Services Act Elections Toolkit and comparative European experience – for closing the gap between awareness and operational preparedness. [+]

BROD Observational Snapshot Romanian Presidential Elections Controversy – The View from Facebook December 8th-15th, 2024

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