Moldovans elect president in crucial runoff marred by fraud and claims of intimidation

CHISINAU, Moldova (AP) — Moldovans cast ballots in a crucial second-round presidential election Sunday pitting pro-Western incumbent Maia Sandu against a Russia-friendly challenger as allegations of vote fraud, election interference and intimidation continued threaten democracy in a candidate country for joining the European Union.

in the first round took place on October 20Sandu won 42% of the vote, but could not get an absolute majority. She is opposed by Oleksandr Stoyanoglo, a former prosecutor general who topped the polls in the first round with almost 26% of the vote.

According to the Central Election Commission, local polling stations closed at 21:00 (19:00 GMT), by which time 1.68 million people had cast their ballots, about 54% of eligible voters. The large Moldovan diaspora also came to the elections in record numbers: more than 315,000 people voted by the time local polling stations closed.

A poll published by research firm iData points to a tight race that is tipping for a narrow victory for Sandu, an outcome that could hinge on the Moldovan diaspora. The office of president carries significant powers in areas such as foreign policy and national security, and has a four-year term.

Accusations of vote-buying and Russian interference

The Moldovan diaspora played a key role in the national referendum, also held on October 20, when a slim majority of 50.35% voted to secure Moldova’s path to EU membership. But the results of the vote, including Sunday’s vote, were clouded by allegations of a major vote-buying scheme and voter intimidation.

Instead of receiving the overwhelming support that Sandu had hoped for, the results in both races showed that Moldova’s judicial system is unable to adequately protect democratic process.

On Sunday, Moldovan police said they had “substantial evidence” of organized transport of voters — illegal under the country’s electoral code — to polling stations from within the country and from abroad, and were “investigating and registering evidence in connection with air transport activities from Russia to Belarus, Azerbaijan and Turkey”.

“Such measures are taken to protect the integrity of the election process and ensure that every citizen can vote freely without undue pressure or influence,” the police said.

Moldova’s foreign ministry said on Sunday afternoon that polling stations in Frankfurt, Germany, Liverpool and Northampton in the UK had been subjected to false bomb threats that “were only meant to stop the voting process”.

Stanislav Sekrieu, the president’s national security adviser, wrote on X: “We are seeing massive Russian interference in our election process,” which he warned has “great potential to distort the results” of the vote.

Secrieru later added that national voter registration systems have been the target of “constant coordinated cyber attacks” to disrupt communications between local polling stations and overseas, and that cybersecurity teams are “working to counter these threats and ensure system continuity.”

Moldovan Prime Minister Dorin Recan said people across the country had received “anonymous death threats via phone calls” in what he called an “extraordinary attack” to scare voters in the former Soviet republic, which has a population of about 2.5 million people

After voting in Chisinau, Sandu said that “today, more than ever, we must be united, keep peace, vote, keep independence.”

“Thieves want to buy our votes, thieves want to buy our country, but the power of the people is infinitely greater,” she told reporters.

Outside a polling station in Romania’s capital, Bucharest, 20-year-old medical student Silviana Zestrea said the second round would be a “decisive step” for Moldova’s future.

“People have to understand that we have to choose a real candidate who lives up to our expectations,” she said. “Because I think even though we’re a diaspora now, none of us really wanted to leave.”

Moldovan police exposed a scheme allegedly developed by a convicted oligarch

After two votes in October, Moldovan law enforcement said the vote-buying scheme was orchestrated by Ilan Shor, an exiled oligarch who lives in Russia and was convicted in absentia last year fraud and money laundering. Shore has pleaded not guilty.

Prosecutors say $39 million was paid to more than 130,000 voters through an internationally sanctioned Russian bank between September and October. Anti-corruption authorities have carried out hundreds of raids and seized more than $2.7 million (€2.5 million) in cash in an attempt to crack down on the crime.

In one case in Gagauzia, an autonomous part of Moldova where only 5% voted for the EU, a doctor was detained after allegedly forcing 25 residents of a nursing home to vote for a candidate they did not choose. Police said they had received “compelling evidence”, including financial transfers from the same Russian bank.

On Saturday at a church in Komrat, the capital of Gagauzia, Father Vasiliy told The Associated Press that he urged people to go and vote because it was a “civic duty” and that they were not naming any candidates.

“We use the benefits that the country offers us – light, gas,” he said. “Whether we like what the government is doing or not, we have to go and vote. … The Church always prays for peace.”

On Thursday, prosecutors raided the headquarters of a political party and said 12 people were suspected of paying voters to choose a candidate in the presidential race. Criminal proceedings have also been opened against 40 employees of state bodies on suspicion of receiving election bribes.

The future of Moldova in the EU is at stake

Cristian Kantir, a Moldovan associate professor in the Department of International Affairs at Oakland University, told the AP that whatever the outcome of the second round, it “will not reduce” geopolitical tensions. “On the contrary, I expect geopolitical polarization to be exacerbated by the campaign for the 2025 legislative elections.”

Moldova’s law enforcement agencies need more resources and better trained staff who work faster to fight voter fraud, he added, to “create an environment where anyone who is tempted to buy or sell votes knows that they will have clear and swift consequences”.

Savlina Adasan, a 21-year-old economics student in Bucharest, said she voted for Sanda, citing concerns about corruption and voters’ lack of information about the two candidates.

“We want a European future for our country,” she said, adding that it offers “a lot of opportunities, development for our country … and I feel that if another candidate wins, it means that we are going back ten steps as a country . .”

A pro-Western government has been in power in Moldova since 2021, and parliamentary elections will be held in 2025. Moldovan observers warn that next year’s vote could become Moscow’s main target.

Following Russia’s invasion of Ukraine in 2022, Moldova applied to join the EU. In June of the same year, it received candidate status, and in the summer of 2024, Brussels agreed start membership negotiations. The sharp shift to the West irritated Moscow and significantly damaged relations with Chisinau.

Since then, Moldovan authorities have repeatedly accused Russia of waging a major “hybrid war,” ranging from large-scale disinformation campaigns, protests by pro-Russian parties, and vote-buying schemes that undermine national elections. Russia denies its involvement.

___

McGrath reported from Bucharest, Romania. Associated Press writer Nicolae Dumitrake in Comrat, Moldova, contributed to this report.