Signal against Moscow Pro-European incumbent Maia Sandu wins in Moldova
In Moldova, a country torn between Russia and the West, the people have decided who will be president. The pro-Western incumbent won - to the delight of EU politicians.
No time? blue News summarizes for you
- In the run-off election for president in the Republic of Moldova, the pro-Western head of state Maia Sandu has won after almost all votes were counted.
- The 52-year-old received 55.1 percent of the vote, according to the election administration in the capital Chisinau after more than 99 percent of the ballots had been counted.
- Sandu's challenger, former Prosecutor General Alexandr Stoianoglo, who also wanted to cooperate with Russia, was defeated with 44.9 percent of the vote.
In the run-off election for the presidency in the Republic of Moldova, the pro-Western head of state Maia Sandu won after almost all votes had been counted. The 52-year-old received 55.1 percent of the vote, according to the election administration in the capital Chisinau after more than 99 percent of the ballots had been counted. Sandu's challenger, former Prosecutor General Alexandr Stoianoglo, who also wanted to cooperate with Russia, was defeated with 44.9 percent of the vote.
Sandu won mainly thanks to the votes of the hundreds of thousands of Moldovans living abroad - mainly in the EU. In her second term in office, the head of state from the Action and Solidarity Party (PAS) wants to push through reforms in the completely impoverished agricultural country with its 2.5 million inhabitants, which is a candidate for EU accession. The upcoming parliamentary elections in the summer are seen as the next political challenge. Sandu can only tackle the changes if she defends her current majority in the People's Assembly.
Voter turnout was higher than in the first round on October 20, at over 54 percent. The leadership in Moldova accused Russia of massive interference on election day. The Kremlin had rejected similar accusations during the first round of voting and demanded proof.
Stoianoglo calls on supporters to remain calm
Sandu had already received the most votes (42.45 percent) of the eleven candidates in the first round of voting. Stoianoglo, who ran for the Socialist Party of the pro-Moscow ex-president Igor Dodon, received 25.98 percent.
The 57-year-old, who won the majority in the country itself with 51.19 percent of the vote, also addressed his compatriots in Russian in Chisinau and asked everyone to remain calm. "Moldova needs stability and not an artificial conflict," he said. The time of hatred and division in the country must end. In his home region of Gagauzia, an autonomous region, he even achieved 97.04 percent.
Although Sandu was considered the favorite, she was also criticized for her lack of economic and social progress. Critics accuse her opponent Stoianoglo of being a puppet of corrupt oligarchs and a candidate of Moscow. The West is keeping a close eye on the results.
Chisinau: Illegal voter transportation
Sandu's national security advisor Stanislav Secrieru accused Russia of massive election interference. He warned on Platform X of the danger of a distorted result. The authorities are alarmed. In the Transnistria region, which is a breakaway from Moldova and where Russian troops are stationed, there are organized voter transports to the polls; this is illegal, he said.
The confidant of incumbent Sandu also published reports of organized transports from Russia on buses and charter flights that flew voters to the Azerbaijani capital of Baku, the Turkish metropolis of Istanbul and the Belarusian capital of Minsk.
Secrieru also published a video circulating on social networks showing people allegedly holding up their Moldovan passports on an airplane on their way to Minsk. There had previously been complaints that only two polling stations were open in Moscow for Moldovans living in Russia to vote. The flight was clear evidence of a broadly organized voter transport, said Secrieru.
The incumbent president of Moldova, Maia Sandu, has won the election again.
Image: Vadim Ghirda/AP
Moldovan President Maia Sandu wants to continue the EU course of the impoverished agrarian country in her second term of office.
Image: dpa
Former Prosecutor General Alexandr Stoianoglo wants economic relations with Russia as well as EU integration.
Image: dpa
Sandu celebrates with supporters.
Image: dpa
Sandu is delighted with the provisional election result.
Image: dpa
The incumbent president of Moldova, Maia Sandu, has won the election again.
Image: Vadim Ghirda/AP
Moldovan President Maia Sandu wants to continue the EU course of the impoverished agrarian country in her second term of office.
Image: dpa
Former Prosecutor General Alexandr Stoianoglo wants economic relations with Russia as well as EU integration.
Image: dpa
Sandu celebrates with supporters.
Image: dpa
Sandu is delighted with the provisional election result.
Image: dpa
Violations of electoral law complained of in advance
Security authorities in the capital Chisinau uncovered disinformation and voter buying by pro-Russian forces in advance. Several Russian-language television channels and internet platforms were blocked in the country. On election day itself, people in the capital Chisinau told reporters from Deutsche Presse-Agentur that they had received calls in the past week asking them to vote for Stoianoglo. Some also said that they had been offered money to do so.
Sandu had also spoken of voter buying after the first round of voting. Two weeks ago, she also called a parallel referendum on anchoring the EU course in the country's constitution. The supporters prevailed by a wafer-thin margin and the Constitutional Court confirmed the validity of the result. Russia, on the other hand, wants to keep the agricultural country, which is in demand for its agricultural products such as apples, plums, grapes and nuts, within its sphere of influence.
EU politicians react with relief to Sandu's re-election
Leading EU representatives and European politicians reacted with relief to Sandu's re-election. EU Commission President Ursula von der Leyen congratulated the politician and praised her assertiveness. "It takes a rare kind of strength to overcome the challenges you faced in this election," von der Leyen wrote on Platform X. "I look forward to continuing to work with you towards a European future for the Republic of Moldova and its people."
The President of the European Parliament, Roberta Metsola, wrote on X that Sandu had "stood up for democracy, the rule of law and a European future" and had "shown exceptional courage and leadership".
French President Emmanuel Macron also expressed his delight. "Democracy has triumphed over all interference and maneuvering", he wrote on X.
Poland's Prime Minister Donald Tusk also expressed cautious optimism. "Despite Russia's aggressive and massive interference" in the election, the pro-Western Sandu "most likely defeated Moscow's favorite," Tusk wrote on the X platform. "Let's hope that this trend will continue in other countries in the coming days and months," he added.
dpa