By Luiza Ilie
BUCHAREST, Dec 7 (Reuters) - Bucharest elected a liberal mayor in Sunday's local election, partial results showed, giving Prime Minister Ilie Bolojan the upper hand in a fragile pro-European ruling coalition and handing a defeat to a hard-right contender tipped to win.
The influential post has been vacant since May when centrist independent Nicusor Dan won a presidential election re-run one year into his second term as mayor, and polls had shown Bucharest on the verge of becoming the first European Union capital led by a hard-right politician.
Instead, Dan will be replaced by Ciprian Ciucu, a close ally of Liberal premier Bolojan, who won 35.4%, an official preliminary count of 90% of votes showed.
Anca Alexandrescu, backed by the opposition hard-right Alliance for Uniting Romanians (AUR) ranked second with 22.35%, still significant for the country's biggest city which is not a far-right stronghold.
AUR, which ranks first in opinion surveys, opposes military aid to neighbouring Ukraine, is critical of EU leadership and supportive of U.S. President Donald Trump's policies including on energy and immigration.
Romania's next general election is in 2028.
Alexandrescu edged out leftist Social Democrat Daniel Baluta, whose party is the biggest in the coalition government and has been critical of Bolojan's plans to trim public sector jobs and costs.
"There will be a shift in the balance of power within the government coalition," said Sergiu Miscoiu, a political science professor at Babes-Bolyai University.
"This win … gives oxygen to the Liberal Party and ensures the governing coalition pushes forward."
The government is widely expected to survive a no-confidence vote later this month over judicial pension reform, and Ciucu's win gave Bolojan ammunition against future pushback.
"Beyond this victory, it is likely good that this coalition will continue, the government ... has promised reforms and it is time to deliver," Ciucu said on Sunday. "I will help from my position on a political level that these reforms happen."
Sunday's ballot took place one year after Romania cancelled a presidential election on suspicion of Russian interference that favoured a far-right frontrunner.
The cancelled election plunged Romania into its worst political crisis in decades, exposed its deep vulnerability to hybrid attacks and disinformation, divided voters, crashed markets and threatened the country's investment-grade rating.
"I voted for things to not change for the worst," said Serban Riga, a 46-year old tour guide. "It looks like the extremist wave is very dangerous and we must do anything possible to stop it."
($1 = 4.3709 lei)
(Reporting by Luiza Ilie; additional reporting by Octav Ganea; Editing by Elaine Hardcastle and Nick Zieminski)
