Active campaigning ends in Moldova parliament elections

Chisinau – Active campaigning came to a halt in Moldova on Saturday, as the former Soviet republic prepared to elect a new parliament. The streets of the capital Chisinau were free of electioneering Saturday morning, as a nationwide last-day ban on election advertising went into effect.

The poll-leading Communists ended their efforts to attract support on Friday evening with an outdoor concert in a Chisinau park.

The Communists’ strongest challengers, the Liberals and Liberal Democrats, finished their campaigns with a blitz of television advertising and talk show appearances. 

The three-month election campaign was the most expensive in Moldova’s history, with all parties combined spending in excess of 3 million dollars on officially registered election advertising, and possibly a like amount on undeclared advertising, Central Election Commission officials said.

A total of 2.6 million Moldovan voters are registered to make a single choice on a ballot listing 12 political parties and an additional six individual candidates.

Parties or individuals receiving support of 6 per cent or more from voters nationwide will receive parliament seats on proportional basis.

The ruling Communist Party was on track to retain its hold on the legislature with 35 to 40 per cent of the vote, expected to give them between 50 and 60 seats in the 101-seat parliament, according to polls.

The well-funded Communist campaign pitched the party as Moldova’s best hope for market economy reforms and integration into Europe, and the only organization with sufficient experience to keep the country stable in difficult times.

The opposition Liberal and Liberal Democrat parties were projected to win a combined 20 to 30 seats, and two or three smaller parties had a chance of placing a few MPs in the legislature, polls said.

Opposition politicians have focused on the need to sack the Communists, who have been in power since 2001, as a way to root out corruption and kick-start Moldova’s weak economy.

But the opposition and Communist platforms throughout the campaign were remarkably similar, with practically all candidates regardless of party affiliation calling for Moldova to join the European Union, avoid NATO, and maintain friendly relations with the Kremlin.

International interest in the vote has been high with an unprecedented 3,000 vote monitors on hand, according to a Moldova-1 television report.