Have the article read by OpenAI (Beta). Please note that AI translations may take some time to process.Moldova’s ruling pro-EU party maintained its parliamentary majority in Sunday’s elections, fending off pro-Russia opposition parties.
It’s a result that has been hailed by European leaders as a rebuff against Russia and a win for the bloc’s enlargement ambitions.
Moldova may only have a population of 2.4 million, but the outcome was being watched intently across Europe. Brussels was aware that not only the future of the small country nestled between Ukraine and Romania was at stake, but also a crucial piece of security on its eastern flank.
Election day was marked by false bomb threats, Moscow-linked cyberattacks and unusual voter movements.
A final turnout of 52.21 percent was the highest ever recorded. The pro-EU Party of Action and Solidarity (PAS) which is headed by Moldovan President Maia Sandu had garnered 50.2 percent of the vote to elect members of the 101-seat parliament.
That compared to 24.17 percent for the pro-Russian Patriotic Bloc, according to results published by the Central Election Commission.
European leaders react with enthusiasm (and relief)
“The future of Moldova is in Europe!” wrote European Parliament President Roberta Metsola on X.
“On this historic step forward, the people of Moldova have chosen the path of democracy, hope and opportunities. They have chosen Europe,” she added.
“Moldova, you’ve done it again,” wrote European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen. Last year Sandu narrowly defeated the pro-Russian presidential candidate.
“No attempt to sow fear or division could break your resolve. You made your choice clear: Europe. Democracy. Freedom,” von der Leyen added.
“Our door is open. And we will stand with you every step of the way. The future is yours.”
PAS has pledged to secure Moldova’s accession to the EU by 2030.
“Despite Russia’s massive efforts to spread disinformation and buy votes, no force can stop a people committed to freedom,” wrote EU High Representative for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy Kaja Kallas.
President Sandu had accused Russia of massive interference, including paying “hundreds of people” to destabilise the country ahead of Sunday’s vote.
Moscow has denied the allegations.
The Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk praised Moldova’s response and the election result. “Not only did you save democracy and kept the European course, but you have also stopped Russia in its attempts to take control over the whole region. A good lesson for us all,” he wrote on X on Monday.
Neighbouring Ukraine’s President Volodymyr Zelenskyy also hailed the result as a victory for the continent.
“Russia failed to destabilise Moldova even after spending huge, huge resources to undermine it and to corrupt whoever they could,” the wartime leader said.
Moldova’s other neighbour Romania was also pleased with the result and that the country voted in a European direction. The country’s Prime Minister Ilie Bolojan said that Moldova’s place is “in the great European family”.
“Personally, as well as on behalf of Romania’s Government, we will stand by the Republic of Moldova on this path. Congratulations, Republic of Moldova!” he added.
Spain’s Foreign Minister José Manuel Albares was also positive. “We are working to ensure that the sovereign will of the Moldovan people, as expressed at the ballot box, is realised in their European integration,” he added.
What next?
However, some analysts are still urging caution.
“Statistically speaking PAS has guaranteed a fragile majority,” analyst Andrei Curararu of the Chișinău-based think tank WatchDog.md said on Sunday as the party took the lead in the count.
But he warned that “danger” had not passed, “as a functional government is difficult to form”.
“The Kremlin has bankrolled too big of an operation to stand down and could resort to protests, bribing PAS MPs and other tactics to disrupt forming a stable pro-European government,” he added.
Dr Teona Lavrelashvili, a research associate at Wilfried Martens Centre for European Studies, said the election result “is a rare achievement in Moldova’s politics and shows that voters are willing to back a reform-oriented course.”
“At the same time, the scale of reforms needed on the rule of law, administration, agriculture, and anti-corruption remains daunting, and delays could easily slow progress,” she warned.
However, she believes Moldova’s path towards EU membership by the end of the decade “looks more achievable than ever” if the momentum is sustained.
Aside from reform-related problems, there may also be other hiccups along the road. Moldova and Ukraine’s applications are twinned. This means that the two countries are being treated as one in the negotiations. The pair were awarded EU candidate status in 2022.
However, member states have a veto on new memberships and Hungary is blocking progress on Ukraine’s application.
Denmark has stuck to the EU’s previous approach to enlargement, where Ukraine and Moldova are seen as part of the same region.
Denmark’s Minister for European Affairs Marie Bjerre does not intend to break with this approach, even though Hungary has blocked the opening of negotiations with Ukraine. She made this clear at a ministerial meeting in Copenhagen in early September.
“The two countries were granted candidate status at the same time, and we began negotiations at the same time. It would be unfair to the Ukrainians if we left them alone when the countries are at the same stage and have made the same reforms,” Bjerre said on September 2.
Romanian MEP and Vice President of the European Parliament Victor Negrescu sees it differently as he stated that the victory is a strong signal for accession to the European Union, and the Council must immediately approve the start of negotiations on chapters.
“As Vice-President of the European Parliament responsible for the relation with the Republic of Moldova, I assure them (the Moldovans) of the full support of the European Parliament. Europe and Romania are winning, and the Republic of Moldova is moving towards a common future with the European Union. By the end of 2028, accession negotiations with the European Union can be completed,” Negrescu said.
There is also hope that Moldova’s election shows Russian disinformation can be countered. Markéta Pekarová Adamová, speaker of the lower house of the Czech parliament, considers the vote in Moldova a victory for freedom, democracy and the European way. “Vladimir Putin’s world has clearly lost. I cordially congratulate President Sandu. We stand by Moldova on its path to the EU! I hope this will be an inspiration for us too, and that the Kremlin will suffer another defeat this weekend,” she wrote on the social media platform X.
In the Czech Republic, parliamentary elections will be held on 3 and 4 October and the right wing populist party ANO is leading in the polls.
Lavrelashvili thinks other countries can learn lessons from Moldova’s approach. “Principled politics is more resistant to foreign meddling than populist shortcuts,” she said.
Moldova showed the importance of strategic communication by creating counter narratives and anticipating disinformation, according to Lavrelashvili. It also disrupted vote buying, acted against illicit Russian funding networks and increased accountability through stricter campaign finance rules.
“I think this showed that enforcement, when consistent, can weaken foreign actors’ ability to distort the electoral process,” she said.
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