George Simion, a nationalist and vocal supporter of U.S. President Donald Trump, has won Romania’s first-round presidential election after capitalizing on widespread anti-establishment sentiment.

Presidential candidate George Simion walks holding a picture of Romanian holy icon of Protection of the Theotokos presented by a supporter outside a polling station during the country's first round of the presidential election,

A George Simion victory could isolate Romania, erode private investment and destabilise NATO's eastern flank, where Ukraine is fighting a three-year-old Russian invasion, political observers say.