Moldovan Presidential Election (2016)

After the decision of the Constitutional Court of March 4, it became necessary to amend the Electoral Code to organize and regulate presidential elections. Amendments to the Electoral Code were first read in parliament in April, after which lawmakers asked the OSCE / ODIHR and the Venice Commission of the Council of Europe to study the proposed amendments. According to the joint statement of these organizations, changes to the Electoral Code are generally in line with international standards and will be able to ensure that the presidential election meets international obligations if they are correctly applied ^{[3] [4]} . On June 23, the amendments passed the second reading, and on July 27 they were promulgated by the president.

According to the adopted legislation, the president is elected for four years in a single nationwide constituency. A candidate shall be considered elected if he has received more than half of the valid votes. In order for the first round of elections to be held valid, more than one third of registered voters must come to polling stations. If no candidate scored the required number of votes in the first round, then in two weeks a second round should be held between the two candidates with the most votes. The turnout threshold for the second round is not provided ^[5] .

The election administration consists of three levels: the Central Election Commission (CEC), 35 district election councils (OECs) and about 2 thousand precinct election bureaus (UIB). The CEC consists of nine people appointed for a five-year term. 8 members are appointed by parliament and one by the president. The OIC and PSB are formed before the election. The OIC consists of 7–9 people nominated by local courts and councils, as well as parliamentary parties. The PSB consists of 5–11 members proposed by local councils and parliamentary parties. At all levels, the representation of political parties in election councils is proportional to their representation in parliament ^[5] .

Voting will not take place in Transdniestria uncontrolled by the Moldovan authorities. However, for Moldovan citizens residing in this territory, the CEC organizes the opportunity to vote at special polling stations ^[5] .

Citizens over the age of eighteen have the right to vote. Persons recognized by a court as incompetent, who are in places of deprivation of liberty and called up for military service, are deprived of the right to vote. Voters abroad can vote in polling stations opened at the diplomatic missions of the Republic of Moldova and at other places proposed by the authorities. Criteria for determining the number and location of polling stations abroad include taking into account the number of voters who participated in previous elections in a given territory and the results of online voluntary registration for voters wishing to vote in a given territory abroad.

A citizen who has the right to vote, has reached at least forty years, has been living in the territory of the Republic of Moldova for at least ten years and speaks the state language can be elected President. Candidates may participate in elections as independents or as nominees of a political party or bloc. Each candidate must form and register an initiative group consisting of 25-100 voters in the CEC. To participate in the elections, it is necessary to collect from 15 to 25 thousand signatures of voters living in at least 18 out of 35 electoral units. It is required to collect not less than 600 signatures in one election unit. Voters may sign in support of only one candidate. Lists with signatures should be checked at the CIS no later than October 1 - the official start of the election campaign. The campaign will last 30 days and end 24 hours before election day . Campaigning prior to the start of the campaign, including the period of registration of candidates, is prohibited ^[5] .

The current socio-political situation in Moldova is characterized by a general distrust of state institutions due to several corruption scandals, especially in the banking sector, economic stagnation and division of society on the issue of the country's geopolitical choice ^[5] . In 2015—2016 a series of mass protests took place in the country, supported by the new social movement “Dignity and Truth” and a number of opposition parties. In October 2015, after anti-government protests, the parliament voted to remove the former Prime Minister Vladimir Filat , accused of corruption, parliamentary immunity ^[6] , and at the end of the month dismissed the government of Valery Strelets ^[7] .

In January 2016, after a series of unsuccessful attempts to form a coalition, the parliamentary factions of the Democratic and Liberal Parties and a number of independent deputies, who left mainly the Liberal Democratic Party and PCRM , agreed on a new government. The new Prime Minister was Pavel Filip, Vice-Chairman of the Democratic Party . The vote on the approval of the government was accompanied by a demonstration of the opposition, which escalated into clashes with the police and the seizure of the parliament building ^[8] . Opposition demands included the holding of early parliamentary elections, the introduction of direct presidential elections, and the release of political prisoners ^[9] .

On March 4, 2016, the Constitutional Court of Moldova declared the constitutional reform of 2000, which envisaged the transition to indirect presidential elections, as non-compliant with the constitution. As a result of this decision, on April 1, 2016, the parliament scheduled the presidential election on October 30. The decision taken by the Constitutional Court is controversial, as, according to some political figures and analysts, the Constitutional Court has exceeded its powers, as the Constitution of the Republic of Moldova can be modified either in accordance with the results of the republican constitutional referendum or by voting in Parliament 2 / 3 votes of the total number of deputies in the Parliament, which in this case did not happen by any of the above methods.

By September 9, 2016, 24 initiative groups for collecting signatures in support of candidates for the post of President of Moldova were registered. However, on September 10, the initiative group to collect signatures in support of independent candidate Oleg Brega refused to collect signatures by decision of the candidate himself. Oleg Brega said that the election was rigged by the authorities, indicating that, in his opinion, the candidate from the ruling party, Marian Lupu, had collected signatures in his support in an incredibly short time ^[10] . On September 23, another independent candidate, Anatoly Plugar, refused to participate in the elections. He demanded that the election be declared unconstitutional, and the signatures in support of the candidates submitted to the CEC were invalid. Plugar explained his decision by serious violations during the preparation and submission of signatures ^[11] . On September 23, another independent candidate, Mihai Korzh , refused to participate in the election, citing violations during the collection of signatures.

September 29 , on the last day of submitting signatures for registration, 8 candidates submitted the required number of signatures to the CEC. The nominated candidates Arthur Croitor , Ilie Rotaru , Vadim Brynzan , Ilie Rotaru , Mikhail Garbuz and Jeta Savitskaya did not provide signatures in their support and will not be able to continue to participate in the elections. According to the results of the verification of the signatures provided to the CEC, four self-nominees were not allowed to participate in the elections: Ion Dron , Roman Mikheesh , Vitaliy Pavlichenko and Vasile Tarlev . Thus, twelve people were registered as candidates for the presidency of Moldova ^[12] .

On October 15, Andrei Nastase announced that he withdrew his candidacy from the election in favor of the candidate from the Action and Solidarity Party, Maya Sandu . This decision was supported by the “Dignity and Truth” party that advanced it. On the same day, the Liberal Democratic Party of Moldova announced the support of Maya Sandu as a single candidate from the right opposition. Thus, the parties fulfilled their promise to nominate a single candidate, who, according to opinion polls, has the greatest support among the candidates for the presidency from the right opposition ^{[13] [14] [15]} .

On October 22, Inna Popenko , a candidate for the Equality Movement, was officially expelled from the presidential race on the basis of a decision of the Supreme Court of Justice, which overturned the CEC's decision to register the candidate. Inna Popenko is accused of bribing voters and not reporting on all expenses incurred during the election campaign. ^[sixteen]

On October 26, candidate from the Democratic Party of Moldova Marian Lupu withdrew his candidacy from the elections in favor of the pro-European candidate with real chances to enter the second round. According to opinion polls, such a candidate is Maya Sandu ^{[17] [18]} .

• Mihai Ghimpu - candidate of the Liberal Party
• Yuriy Leanca - candidate of the European People's Party of Moldova
• Dmitry Chubashenko - candidate of Our Party
• Maya Sandu - candidate for the Action and Solidarity Party
• Igor Dodon - candidate of the Party of Socialists of the Republic of Moldova
• Anna Gutsu - candidate RIGHT Party
• Valery Giletsky - an independent candidate
• Maya Laguta is an independent candidate
• Sylvia Radu is an independent candidate

First tour

On October 31, a joint mission, consisting of observers from the OSCE / ODIHR, OSCE PA , PACE and EP , issued a preliminary opinion on the parliamentary elections in Moldova. The mission came to the conclusion that the first round of elections provided citizens with a full-fledged opportunity to elect a new head of state. The election campaign was competitive and held in compliance with fundamental rights and freedoms. However, the election process was overshadowed by the widespread use of administrative resources, insufficient transparency of campaign funding for candidates, and biased media coverage of the campaign. The work of the election administration was professional and open. Voting and vote counting were mostly rated positively ^{[19] [20]} .

Observers for the CIS Interparliamentary Assembly stated that the first round of elections was free, open and competitive, that it complied with national law and that no serious violations were noted during the election campaign ^{[21] [22]} .

Second round

Observers for the CIS Interparliamentary Assembly recognized the second round of elections as competitive, well organized and conducted in accordance with national and international standards. Violations were noted during the elections and the shortcomings in the organization of the process of expression of will, however, their scale could not distort the final results ^{[23] [24]} .

The joint mission, consisting of observers from the OSCE / ODIHR, OSCE PA , PACE and EP , recognized the second round of elections as competitive and conducted in compliance with fundamental freedoms. Citizens were free to make a choice in favor of a particular candidate; there were no illegal restrictions on the activities of observers. Procedures on election day (voting, vote counting and tabulation) received a positive assessment. Observers also noted the shortcomings of the organization of the elections, which included the highly polarized media coverage of the campaign, the use of harsh and intolerant rhetoric, and the use of administrative resources.

First tour

The first round of elections was held on October 30, 2016.

Second round

The second round of elections was held on November 13, 2016. Despite the preparations made for the high turnout of voters at polling stations abroad and voters from the left bank of the Dniester , many citizens were unable to vote due to the lack of ballots ^{[25] [26] [27]} .

The victory was won by I. Dodon, gaining 52.11% of the vote. His rival M. Sandu won 47.89% of the vote ^[28] .

Results of the second round of administrative-territorial units:

• Presidency of Igor Dodon

• Election of the President of the Republic of Moldova on October 30, 2016 // alegeri.md
• In Moldova, the left is ready to support not Moscow, but Brussels // NG, November 1, 2016
• Moldova. Now the fun begins // Expert Online 2016
• The Moldavian president from pro-Russian becomes pro-Moldavian // NG, 11.28.2016