Leaders of Romanian parties that, according to exit polls, may surpass the percentage threshold needed to enter parliament have provided initial comments. There was joy over maintaining a pro-Western direction,

Romania’s Social Democratic Party looked set to win the most votes in Sunday’s parliamentary election, incomplete data showed, while far-right populists were on track to make significant gains in the country’s legislature.

Exit polls showed the PSD winning 26% of votes, ahead of the hard-right Alliance for Uniting Romanians (AUR) at 19%. The PSD has 32.5% of seats in the current parliament, while AUR has 8.5%.

The election comes after a pro-Russia nationalist candidate secured victory in the first round of Romania’s presidential election last month. At 25 per cent, prime minister Marcel Ciolacu’s centre-left PSD party won the largest share of the vote in the general election,

Pro-Western parties have won the most votes in Romania’s parliamentary election and will look to form a coalition government as the European Union country faces a surge of support for far-right nationalists who made huge gains in the country’s legislature.