Moldova’s pro-Western ruling party appears to be on track to top the polls in a critical parliamentary election overshadowed by claims of Russian interference.
The race was widely seen as a geopolitical choice between a path toward the European Union or a drift back into Moscow’s fold. With about 75% of polling station reports counted, official electoral data showed the pro-EU Party of Action and Solidarity leading with 44.3% of the vote, while the pro-Russian Patriotic Electoral Bloc had 27.7%. The Russia-friendly Alternativa Bloc stood at 8.5%, and the populist Our Party — which advocates for a balanced foreign policy between East and West — had 6.5%. The right-wing Democracy at Home party secured 6%.
Election day was marked by a string of incidents, including bomb threats at multiple polling stations abroad, cyber attacks on electoral and government infrastructure, voters photographing their ballots, and some ballots being illegally transported to polling stations. Police also detained three people suspected of plotting to cause unrest after the vote.
Igor Grosu, leader of the Party of Action and Solidarity, commented on the situation: “The consequences of this (Russia) intervention are hard to estimate at this hour. We are waiting for the election results. We pray for patience and calm.”
The pivotal vote will elect a new 101-seat parliament. Following the election, Moldova’s president nominates a prime minister—generally from the leading party or bloc—who then attempts to form a new government. The proposed government requires parliamentary approval.
When polls closed locally at 9 pm (6 pm GMT) on Sunday, the Central Electoral Commission reported that more than 1.59 million people, or about 51.9% of eligible voters, had cast their ballots. This number includes 264,000 Moldovans voting at polling stations set up abroad, which remained open until 7 pm in their respective countries. By comparison, turnout in the 2021 parliamentary election was just over 48%.
After polls closed, Igor Grosu said Russia’s attempts to hijack the electoral process had been significant. He praised state institutions for their efforts to ensure the security and integrity of the voting process but reiterated that the full consequences of the interference remain unclear.
Moldova, a landlocked country between Ukraine and EU member Romania, has about 2.5 million people. In recent years, it has been pursuing a westward path and gained EU candidate status in 2022, shortly after Russia launched a full-scale invasion of Ukraine. Since then, tensions between Russia and Moldova—a former Soviet republic until 1991—have skyrocketed.
Following her vote on Sunday, Moldova’s pro-Western president, Maia Sandu, restated long-held claims that Russia massively interfered in the election. She said she voted to keep the peace and emphasized that Moldova’s future lies within the EU.
Days before Sunday’s vote, Moldovan Prime Minister Dorin Recean warned that Russia was spending hundreds of millions of euros as part of an alleged hybrid war aimed at seizing power. He described the election as the final battle for Moldova’s future.
The alleged Russian strategies included a large-scale vote-buying operation, cyber attacks, plans to incite mass riots around the election, and a widespread disinformation campaign online intended to diminish support for the pro-European ruling party and sway voters toward Moscow-friendly parties.
Just before the vote, police conducted hundreds of raids, detaining dozens of people allegedly trained in Serbia to cause mass riots and destabilize Moldova around the election.
Russia has repeatedly denied meddling in Moldova’s elections and dismissed the allegations last week as anti-Russian and unsubstantiated. However, on Sunday, Moldovan police reported having information about groups planning to cause unrest starting around midnight and continuing during a planned protest in Chisinau on Monday to create disorder and destabilization.
Igor Dodon, former president and member of the pro-Russian Patriotic Electoral Bloc, called for a protest in front of the parliament building on Monday. After polls closed, he alleged that the pro-Western ruling party was now in panic and considering various pretexts and scenarios that violate the law and democratic norms.
https://www.breakingnews.ie/world/moldovas-pro-eu-ruling-party-leading-polls-in-critical-parliamentary-election-1812374.html