Moldovan President Maia Sandu promised on Sunday (July 11) to “end the rule of thieves” because her pro-European party seems to win the parliamentary elections, and she called for her support for her stand against pro-Russian forces.
According to the Election Commission, the Center-Right Action and Solidarity (PAS) Party of Sandu led with more than 47% of the votes, and as of 11:45 pm (20:45 GMT), 90% of the votes had been counted.
“I hope that today will be the end of Moldova’s difficult times. I hope that today the rule of thieves in Moldova will end,” she said in a statement on Facebook.
The Agence France-Presse reporter saw that as votes were still being counted, Sandu’s supporters were celebrating at her campaign headquarters in Chisinau, the capital.
“There is no more conspiracy. Sandu’s party will get the majority,” political analyst Alexei Tulbray, the country’s former ambassador to the United Nations, told AFP.
The main rival of the Islamic Party of the Union of Socialists and Communists led by former President Igor Dodon and former President Vladimir Voronin, backed by the Kremlin, won about 31% of the vote.
Sandu voted in Chisinau and said that she voted for the reforms of the small former Soviet Union plagued by poverty and corruption.
Sandu told reporters after the vote: “I vote for an honest parliament to cooperate with, a parliament that will appoint honest and capable people.”
Her predecessor, Doton, whom she defeated last year, warned against voting for those who “handed over the country to outside control” at the time of the vote.
Between Ukraine and Romania, a member of the European Union, this country of approximately 2.6 million people has long been divided because of closer ties with the EU or maintaining Soviet-era relations with Moscow. Moldova has the status of an associated country of the EU and is a member of the EU Eastern Partnership.
One way Sandu angered the Kremlin was to propose the removal of the Russian garrison stationed along the Transnistria, a pro-Russian secession area that straddles the country’s eastern border with Ukraine.
Because lawmakers loyal to the 46-year-old Doton blocked Sandu’s promise of reform after winning the election in November, she dissolved the parliament in April and arranged for a quick vote.
‘glorious future’
The 49-year-old former World Bank economist’s commitment to honesty and competence resonated with many Moldovans who have seen their country shaken by political crises and corruption scandals in recent years.
“Maybe we will have a council to consider our Moldova. For our children and for a better future,” Anna Olari, a 40-year-old confectioner, told AFP.
Turbre said that Sandu, who was briefly prime minister, has become a “symbol of change” for many Moldovans.
More than 48% of eligible voters voted in the election. This means that the turnout rate is higher than the first round of the presidential vote, but lower than 53% of the second round of voting.
At polling stations, voters must wear masks and take their body temperature to prevent the spread of the coronavirus.
Twenty political parties and two electoral groups participated in the election.
They must exceed the 5% and 7% vote thresholds respectively to obtain seats in the unicameral parliament, which has 101 members elected for a four-year term.
The diaspora—accounting for more than one-third of Moldova’s eligible voters and widely supported Sandu during the presidential election—voted more than 200,000 votes and set a record of 262,000 votes in the second round of the presidential election.
With 30% of the votes, the PAS won 76% of the votes of the diaspora, while the Communist Party and the socialists got 9% of the votes.
Enraged the Kremlin
Observers said that the victory of the Sandu Party may be a blow to Russia, and Russia hopes that Moldova will stay within its sphere of influence.
But “even with a majority in parliament, implementing her ambitious plan for in-depth changes is not easy,” said independent analyst Victor Ciobanu.
He added that the pro-Russian side will “strongly oppose it.”
Doton told reporters on Sunday evening that after analyzing all election irregularities, he will “decide whether to protest the election results”. Moldova police said they have received 242 such reports.
