While Romania's victory for Nicusor Dan has seen moderate forces prevail over the populist candidate, Poland's presidential race between centrist and nationalist candidates remains highly competitive. 'If the PiS party also secures support from the far-right and anti-Semitic candidates, it could get very tense,' says Europe correspondent Geert Jan Hahn.
In Poland, the first round has become a neck-and-neck race between Warsaw's centrist mayor Rafal Trzaskowski and nationalist Karol Nawrocki, who may gain support from far-right candidates Slawomir Mentzen and Grzegorz Braun. The rest of Europe has breathed a sigh of relief as pro-European forces won in Romania, but watches Poland—a key country with a large military—with concern.