Persons who identify, both during the election campaign, and in the pre -Voting Day, online political advertising materials on very large online platforms can send a complaint to the Central Electoral Bureau (BEC).
Complaints on the election campaign held online can be submitted to the bulb
If the complaint is well -founded, the bulb issues a decision to act against illegal content, which is transmitted to very high online platforms through the Permanent Electoral Authority (AEP). The election campaign is carried out between April 04 – May 03, at 07:00.
The National Authority for Administration and Regulation in Communications (ANCOM), as a national digital services coordinator, has launched a section in which the necessary information can be identified. The section also includes the Guide for the prevention and combating of the misinformation actions of the voters performed by the Permanent Electoral Authority, as well as information on how to report an possible illegal content on the big online platforms.
Mechanism to settle complaints on online election campaign
Persons who identify, both during the election campaign and in the pre -Voting day or day, non -compliant political advertising materials can send a complaint, according to the model made by the Central Electoral Bureau, here.
If the non -compliant political advertising materials are hosted on a very large platform, the complaint must be transmitted.
The complaints regarding the non -compliant political advertising materials that are hosted online, but not on the big platforms, are sent to the county electoral offices, the electoral offices of the sectors of Bucharest or the Electoral Bureau no. 48 for the polling stations abroad, as the case may be.
The Central Electoral Bureau, the county electoral offices, the electoral offices of the Bucharest municipality and the electoral bureau for the polling stations abroad have the capacity of relevant authorities, according to GEO no. 1/2025 regarding some measures for the organization and conduct of elections for the President of Romania in 2025 and the partial local elections of 2025.
Depending on the online platform targeted, the relevant authority issues a decision to solve the complaints, in case the complained content is identified as illegal. The decision to act against the illegal content is immediately communicated to the permanent electoral authority. The AEP will send the decision to the platforms that must eliminate the advertising material in question.
The decisions of the Central Electoral Bureau can be challenged at the Bucharest Court of Appeal, within 48 hours from their display on the website of the Central Electoral Bureau.
At the same time, the decisions are made public by issuing a press release and by displaying in a visible place at the headquarters of the issuing Electoral Bureau and on its website.
Regulation on digital services
The regulation on digital services does not empower the coordinators of digital services to rule on the legality or veracity of online content, but creates diligence mechanisms for online platforms to protect fundamental rights. Thus, the Regulation on digital services does not seek to reach the excessive moderation of content in the online environment, but it takes into account that online platforms manage the content of users in a diligent, consistent, transparent and according to the law, in particular respecting the fundamental right to freedom of expression and information.
To protect freedom of expression, the Regulation on digital services obliges online platforms to:
• Explain clearly in their terms and conditions how the content moderates and apply these rules consistently and equitably;
• provide users with detailed exposures on the reasons why their content or account has been restricted or eliminated;
• Create internal complaints settlement systems, which allow users to challenge moderation decisions directly to the online platform provider.
ANCOM is a national coordinator of digital services, being responsible for the supervision of the application of the Regulation on digital services in Romania.
As a coordinator, ANCOM verifies how intermediary service providers, established or who have the legal representative designated on the territory of Romania, comply with the obligations that come according to the Regulation on digital services.
It should be understood that the role of ANCOM does not imply, in any way, content moderation. This is also the reason for which the complaints regarding the illegal content are not solved by ANCOM, but by the relevant authorities, that is, those authorities that have supervision and control duties on a certain field. The public institutions or authorities that have attributions regarding the supervision of a particular sector or field of activity in the offline environment also in the online environment, according to the Regulation on digital services.
ANCOM can rule on an illegal content only in those situations in which the authority is designated, by the legal norms in force, expressly, as a relevant authority (for example, ANCOM has the role of supervisory and control authority regarding the marketing of radio equipment or in terms of electromagnetic compatibility).
At the May 2025 presidential elections, ANCOM, together with the Permanent Electoral Authority, the Ministry of Internal Affairs, the National Audiovisual Council, the National Cyber Security Directorate and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, is part of the auxiliary staff of the Central Electoral Bureau.
