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Even before the elections, the ACUM group pledged to not enter a coalition with neither the Democrats nor the Socialists. 10 As ACUM seems to take its promise very seriously, some supporters criticize the bloc for “prematurely” taking its status of parliamentary opposition and not seizing the possibility to change anything. 11 Voices from outside Moldova see ACUM’s outcome to enter the parliament, for the first time, with already 26 of 101 seats, as a very positive one, despite the many obstacles the electoral bloc was confronted with (like other parties buying votes from the Transnistrian population, exclusion from voting of part of the diaspora, media coverage mostly in favor of big parties, changing of the voting system in favor of established parties etc., see below). 12 The refusal of ACUM to build any coalition leads – despite the (geo-)political differences between the Socialists and the Democrats – to open exploratory talks between the two big parties who both want to govern the country. Another possibility would be snap elections in the coming months. However, experts claim that political players do not have guarantees that they will get better results by rerunning the elections and therefore, they may support the formation of a new government. 13 All in all, the OSCE election observation mission evaluated that the elections were competitive and the fundamental rights were generally respected. However, the OSCE reported that pressure was put on public employees, state resources were misused and found strong indications of vote buying, which affected mostly inhabitants of Transnistria 14 who were brought to polling stations in territories under control of the Moldovan government with special buses and were allegedly paid $20 to cast their ballot. Additionally, certain media outlets were blamed for the limited range of viewpoints presented to voters. It was seen critically, that just a few weeks prior to the elections, it was decided that Moldovans abroad were not allowed to vote with a (valid) ID or an expired passport, which was accepted during previous elections. 15 Part of the diaspora who tends to vote for pro- European forces, e.g. ACUM, was therefore excluded from voting. The outcome of the elections does not deliver a clear result in which direction Moldova is heading in the future but it shows that the Moldovan population is strongly divided. Although Dodon himself underlined the high probability of snap elections 16 , rerunning elections would be expensive and it is not thought that they would bring a different outcome, despite the alleged “inconsistencies” at the last elections. And as the ACUM group does not seem to be open for any coalition talks, the most likely scenario for Moldova at the moment will probably be a coalition between the Democrats and the Socialists, even if they do not have the same viewpoints on many topics. However, Socialists and Democrats both want to be part of the government, which may lead them to overcome their differences and find compromises. The next days and weeks will show in which way Moldova is heading. It is sure that the outcome will have strong impacts on the www.pontothinktank.org office@pontothinktank.org @pontothinktank
country’s future and its relations with the EU and Russia. From a European Union’s point of view, it would be unfortunate if Moldova abandoned its European path now as collaboration with the neighbors in the East is advancing. From a democratic perspective, moreover, it would be urgent that Moldova intensifies the fight against corruption and the oligarchic system and strengthens its institutions. Author Magda Stumvoll is project coordinator and research fellow at the Austro-French Centre for Rapprochement in Europe. She graduated with a Master's degree in European studies from University of Regensburg and University of Auvergne. She has been a Ponto member since autumn 2018 and has been actively participating in its Eastern Europe Program. 1 Michael Emerson, Denis Cenusa, Deepening EU-Moldovan Relations. What, why and how?, (London, 2 nd edition, 2018), pp.30-31. 2 The often occurrence of dual citizenship in Moldova is based on its close historic and cultural ties with Romania, which is especially visible through their common language. Based on a Romanian citizenship law from 1991, former citizens of Romania and their descendent can easily get Romanian citizenship. This became especially appealing for Moldovans in 2001 when Romanians were granted visa-free travel in the Schengen area and after Romania’s accession to the EU in 2007. Although Romanian authorities do not provide official statistics on re-naturalizations of Moldovans, in 2014 it was estimated that more than 300,000 Moldovan citizens have reclaimed Romanian citizenship. However, unofficial figures indicate a higher number of about more than 500,000 Moldovans – of its 3,5 million inhabitants – having official Romanian documents. 3 Kinga Jaromin, EU freezes funding for Moldova. In: Euractiv, 10.07.2015. Available at https://www.euractiv.com/section/europe-s-east/news/eu-freezes-funding-for-moldova/ (25.02.2019); Delegation of EU to Moldova, Press Release: EU Budget Support for the Republic of Moldova – pending the fulfilment of several conditions, 08.07.2015. Available at http://eeas.europa.eu/archives/delegations/moldova/documents/press_corner/press_release_eu_bud get_support_2015_07_08_en.pdf (25.02.2019). 4 Emerson, Cenusa, Deepening EU-Moldovan Relations, p.19.; Alexander Tanas, EU freezes aid to Moldova as row over mayoral election festers. In: Reuters, 04.07.2018. Available at https://www.reuters.com/article/us-moldova-protests-eu/eu-freezes-aid-to-moldova-as-row-overmayoral-election-festers-idUSKBN1JU2G7 (25.07.2019). 5 Emerson, Cenusa, Deepening EU-Moldovan Relations, p. 30. 6 Rikard Jozwiak, Romania Blocks Critical EU Text about Moldova. In: Radio Free Europe, 06.12.2018. Available at https://www.rferl.org/a/romania-blocks-critical-eu-text-about-moldova/29641255.html (26.02.2019). 7 Kamil Całus, Wojciech Konończuk, Moldova, which used to be perceived as one of the most democratic post-Soviet countries, has come to be dominated by one politician. In: Carnegie Europe, 04.05.2017. Available at https://carnegieeurope.eu/strategiceurope/69856 (26.02.2019). 8 William H. Hill, Moldova’s Upcoming Election: What’s at stake? In: Wilson Center, 14.02.2019. Available at https://www.wilsoncenter.org/blog-post/moldovas-upcoming-election-whats-stake (26.02.2019). www.pontothinktank.org office@pontothinktank.org @pontothinktank
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