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 election was widely viewed as a geopolitical choice between pursuing a path to the European Union or drifting 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 stood at 27.7%.

The Russia-friendly Alternativa Bloc had 8.5%, and the populist Our Party, which advocates for a balanced foreign policy between East and West, garnered 6.5%. The right-wing Democracy at Home party held 6% of the vote.

Election Day was marked by a series of incidents, including bomb threats at multiple polling stations abroad, cyberattacks targeting electoral and government infrastructure, voters photographing their ballots, and illegal transportation of ballots to polling stations. Police also detained three individuals 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 [Russian] intervention are hard to estimate at this hour. We are waiting for the election results. We pray for patience and calm.”

This pivotal vote will elect a new 101-seat parliament. Following the election, Moldova’s president nominates a prime minister, typically from the leading party or bloc, who then attempts to form a government. The proposed government must receive parliamentary approval.

When polls closed locally at 9 p.m. (6 p.m. GMT) on Sunday, the Central Electoral Commission reported that more than 1.59 million people — about 51.9% of eligible voters — had cast ballots. This figure included 264,000 Moldovans voting at polling stations set up abroad, which remained open until 7 p.m. in their respective countries. In the 2021 parliamentary election, turnout was just over 48%.

After polls closed, Igor Grosu stated that Russia’s attempts to hijack the electoral process had been significant, but that state institutions worked to ensure the security and integrity of voting.

Moldova is a landlocked country of approximately 2.5 million people, situated between Ukraine and EU member Romania. Since gaining independence from the Soviet Union in 1991, Moldova has spent recent years on a westward path and was awarded EU candidate status in 2022, shortly after Russia launched a full-scale invasion of Ukraine.

Tensions between Russia and Moldova escalated dramatically as a result.

Following her vote on Sunday, Moldova’s pro-Western President Maia Sandu reiterated longstanding claims that Russia massively interfered in the election. She said she voted to keep the peace and emphasized that her country’s future lies within the EU.

Days before the election, Moldovan Prime Minister Dorin Recean warned that Russia was spending hundreds of millions of euros as part of an alleged hybrid war to seize power, describing the election as “the final battle for our country’s future.”

The alleged Russian strategies included large-scale vote-buying, cyberattacks, plans to incite mass riots around the vote, and a sprawling disinformation campaign aimed at diminishing support for the pro-European ruling party and boosting Moscow-friendly parties.

Just before the vote, police conducted hundreds of raids, detaining scores of people allegedly trained in Serbia to incite mass riots and destabilize the country during the election period.

Russia has repeatedly denied meddling in Moldova and dismissed the allegations last week as anti-Russian and unsubstantiated.

However, on Sunday, Moldovan police announced they had information about groups planning to cause unrest from around midnight and during a Monday protest in Chisinau, aimed at creating disorder and destabilization.

Igor Dodon, a 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 in panic and considering various pretexts, excuses, and scenarios that go beyond the law and democratic norms.
https://www.breakingnews.ie/world/moldovas-pro-eu-ruling-party-leading-polls-in-critical-parliamentary-election-1812374.html