Moldovans were voting Sunday in a high-stake parliamentary elections that could see the former Soviet state cement its ties with the European Union or return to Russian orbit.
Neither side is expected to win a majority in the 101-seat chamber, and post-election trading is likely to result, in one of Europe’s poorest countries which is pressured by h war in neighboring Ukraine and suspected Russian meddling in politics and religion.
As voting got underway, a pro-Russian leader called for potential post-vote protests and the country’s cyber authorities reported that election infrastructure had been attacked over the past two days.
The government has complained in recent weeks of an extensive Russian campaign to pervert the vote. Maia Sandu, who supports EU membership, has warned of “immediate and dangerous” consequences if Russian influence prevails.
The opposition pro-Russian Patriotic Bloc have tapped into voter unease over economic dissatisfaction, and a slow pace of reforms, issues aggravated by widespread disinformation, officials say.
The country of 2.5 million became a candidate for European Union membership in 2022 and last year its citizens voted narrowly in a referendum to pursue EU membership.
The ruling pro-Western Party of Action and Solidarity is facing a stiff challenge from the Russia-friendly Patriotic Electoral Bloc (BEP). Its platform is “friendship with Russia, “permanent neutrality” and a “state that serves the people, not officials.”
Ahead of the election, Moldova’s electoral commission banned two openly pro-Russian parties from competing in the election, amid reports of a widespread Russian disinformation campaign.
Pro-Western Moldovan President Maia Sandu delivered a grim warning this week about Russia’s efforts to interfere in the election.
“The Kremlin is pouring hundreds of millions of euros to buy hundreds of thousands of votes on both banks of the Nistru river and abroad,” she said.
“People are intoxicated daily with lies. Hundreds of individuals are paid to provoke disorder, violence and spread fear.”
If Russia were to gain political control over Moldova, “the consequences will be immediate and dangerous for our country and for the entire region,” she said.
In a sign of the tensions, Moldovan electoral authorities have accredited 3,400 election observers including 912 international observers.
The parties barred from standing in the Sunday ballot were the Heart of Moldova and Moldova Mare who are facing accusation of improper and illegal financing and voter bribery.
Russia has some 1,500 troops stationed in Transnistria, a pro-Russian breakaway region of Moldova. A Russia-friendly parliament in Chisinau would strengthen its hand and potentially provide another route into Ukraine. The Ukrainian strategic port Odesa is close to Moldova’s border.
