BUCHAREST - Former NATO Deputy Secretary General Mircea Geoana has a narrow lead over Romanian leftist Prime Minister Marcel Ciolacu in the first round of Romania's presidential election, an opinion poll showed, with a wide pool of candidates fragmenting the vote.

European Union and NATO member Romania holds a two-round presidential election on Nov. 24 and Dec. 8, with parliamentary polls in between. As presidential powers include oversight of foreign policy, the new president will play a critical role in Romania's commitment to supporting Ukraine.

Eleven candidates have so far announced plans to run for president and replace outgoing Klaus Iohannis who completes his second and final term in December.

Although the role is largely ceremonial, the president's powers also include nominating the prime minister after elections, appointing judges and prosecutors and sending bills back to parliament for reexamination.

Conducted by pollster INSCOP Research, the survey showed 66-year-old Geoana gaining 21.4% of the vote in the first round and Ciolacu, 56, getting 20.3%.

Elena Lasconi, a two-term mayor of the town of Campulung in the central Romanian Arges county and leader of centre-right opposition Save Romania Union (USR) would rank third with 14.2%.

The leader of ruling coalition Liberals Nicolae Ciuca would rank sixth behind two ultra-nationalist candidates. The poll surveyed 1,102 people between Sept. 11-16 and has a margin of error of 3.0%.

"The competition in the first round will be much more contested than in previous presidential polls," said INSCOP Research director Remus Stefureac, noting the large number of candidates would split the vote and Romania's democracy faced a new situation - where a candidate might proceed to the second round with under 25% of the vote.

Previous opinion polls had Ciolacu, the leader of the ruling Social Democrat Party (PSD) in first place. A PSD leader has not been president in Romania since 2004.

Geoana, a former PSD leader who lost a presidential election in 2009, is running as an independent.

  - Reuters