Moldova’s ruling pro-EU party wins election marred by claims of Russian meddling

By Catherine Nicholls, Kosta Gak, Christian Edwards, Helen Regan, CNN

(CNN) — Moldova’s ruling pro-Western party is on track for a decisive victory and a fresh majority in parliament after a crucial election riven with allegations of Russian interference.

Before the vote, President Maia Sandu warned that Russia had spent “hundreds of millions of euros” in a bid to sway the result, seen as crucial for the former Soviet state’s future path to the European Union.

But with more than 99% of votes counted early Monday, Sandu’s Party of Action and Solidarity (PAS) had secured more than 50% of the vote, far ahead of the pro-Russian opposition Patriotic Bloc with under 25%. If confirmed, PAS will retain its majority in Moldova’s 101-seat legislature.

Igor Dodan, head of the Patriotic Bloc and Sandu’s predecessor as president, has called for protests on Monday outside the parliament in the capital Chisinau. Before the vote, Moldovan authorities warned of the risk of disruption and street violence once polls closed.

Casting her vote Sunday, Sandu said there was “a lot at stake” for Moldova, and that she hoped the country “will have the chance to continue to strengthen its democracy, to protect its space, and to continue its EU integration path.”

Sandu is targeting EU membership for Moldova within the next five years and warned of dangerous consequences if Russian influence prevailed in the country of 2.4 million, which borders Ukraine.

Sandu, a Harvard-educated former World Bank official, won the presidential election by a landslide in 2020 and her party swept to power the next year, pledging to clean up corruption and improve governance. Its progress, however, was hampered by the security and economic crises which spilled over from Ukraine after Russia’s all-out invasion in 2022.

Although Sandu won widespread praise for helping Moldova secure EU candidate status in 2023, some voters were frustrated with the pace of reform and spiralling gas prices, after Russia cut off supplies and Moldova sought new procurement deals with Romania.

But Sunday’s election means both Sandu and her party have twice won elections by commanding margins, despite widespread claims of Russian meddling.

“Moldova has demonstrated that Russia can be defeated against all odds and even in a hugely asymmetric fight,” Oana Popescu-Zamfir, director of the GlobalFocus Center think-tank, told CNN.

She said Moldova had repeatedly shown “an incredible level of commitment to a pro-democratic, pro-European future,” and that the EU now “needs to show it is as serious about enlargement as the candidates are.”

Accusations of Russian interference

Ahead of Sunday’s election, Sandu accused Russia of attempting to sway the vote to install a government more pliant to Moscow through a vast disinformation campaign.

Moldova, which won independence as the Soviet Union crumbled, was subject to a “tsunami” of Russian cash, cryptocurrency and disinformation, in a campaign that aimed to bolster pro-Russian opposition, Nicu Popescu, Moldova’s former foreign minister, told CNN last week.

Moscow has denied any interference.

On Sunday, Moldovan National Security Adviser Stanislav Secrieru said there had been a string of incidents on election day including cyberattacks targeting electoral systems and government websites, false bomb threats against polling stations abroad and illegal transportation of voters to polling stations.

Moldova’s foreign ministry said that polling stations in Belgium, Italy, Romania, Spain and the US were targeted by bomb threats “as part of the Russian Federation’s assault on the electoral process in the Republic of Moldova.”

Moldovan Prime Minister Dorin Recean said that cyberattacks were launched on infrastructure related to the electoral process, including the Central Election Commission’s website and “several polling stations outside the country.”

“All attacks were detected and neutralized in real time, without affecting the electoral process,” he said in a post on social media.

Moldova’s sizeable diaspora was crucial in securing Sandu’s reelection in 2024, but analysts said that Russia campaigned to demotivate those more liberal voters this time.

This is a developing story and will be updated.

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