General election in Moldova July 2009
The July 2009 parliamentary elections in Moldova took place on July 29, 2009. It was the second parliamentary election in Moldova in 2009 after the April 5th election .
prehistory
After the elections on April 5, 2009, no presidential candidate in the Moldovan parliament was able to win the three-fifths majority required. According to the Moldovan constitution, incumbent Vladimir Voronin was forced to dissolve parliament and call new elections. The opposition parties had accused the ruling communists of election fraud and boycotted the election of the new head of state in parliament.
Changes to the electoral law
In the run-up to the election, the electoral law was changed with the votes of the Communist Party. Parliamentary elections are now valid when at least one third of those eligible to vote cast their votes. So far, a participation of 50% was necessary. In addition, the threshold clause has been reduced from six to five percent.
Mood in advance
Role of unrest
Moldovan political scientists assumed in advance that the assessment of the unrest and the behavior of the opposition after the elections in April could have a major influence on the people's decision to vote. According to a poll from the beginning of July 2009, almost half of Moldovans believed that the ruling communists or incumbent President Voronin had benefited from the unrest, while only around 13 percent of those surveyed believed that the situation had benefited the opposition parties. In the same survey, over 70 percent were in favor of Moldova joining the EU , while only 25 percent supported joining NATO .
Allegations against the opposition
The election campaign was marked by the contrast between the Communists struggling to maintain power and the opposition parties. The Moscow-loyal communist government accused the opposition parties of wanting to give up Moldova's statehood (this was the most common accusation of unification with Romania) and of planning a “coup”. The communists also accused Romania of financing and planning the unrest and, since April 7, 2009, introduced visa requirements for Romanian nationals entering the country. On July 22nd, 2009 the Moldovan Prosecutor General Valeriu Gurbulea admitted that there was no interference from Romania, but the communist government still refused to lift the visa requirement for Romanian travelers and the incumbent President Vladimir Voronin justified this stance with the fact that it was in Romania There is already a visa requirement for Moldovan citizens (a visa is required for the entry of Moldovan citizens in all EU countries, but the Moldovan government only requires a visa from citizens of the western neighboring country).
The Communist Party is a great opponent of unification with Romania and claims to be the only guarantor of Moldovan independence, which this election would be about.
Foreign policy orientation determined election campaign
Although the communists had also spoken out in favor of rapprochement with the European Union in the past , they were associated with closer ties to Russia during the election campaign , while the opposition parties stood for a clear westward course. In the weeks leading up to the election, they moved closer to the side of Russia, which promised the communist government financial aid totaling US $ 500 million .
Polls expected a close election result
The Barometrul de Opinie Publică poll , published on July 20, showed slight losses for the ruling communists, who, with just over 50 parliamentary seats, would remain the strongest force with an absolute parliamentary majority. Within the opposition, which would get almost half of the seats, Alianța Moldova Noastră, previously represented in parliament, would fail because of the threshold clause. The Partidul Democrat in Moldova would move into parliament as a new force. Pollsters also thought a narrow majority of the opposition's votes was possible.
Change of sides of the President of Parliament
Surprisingly, the high-ranking member of the Communist Party, Marian Lupu , resigned from the party in July and joined the ranks of the opposition. A short time later, the former parliamentary president was elected as the new chairman of the Partidul Democrat din Moldova.
Incoming lists
The already approved lists Partidul Național Liberal ( German National Liberal Party ) and Mişcarea social-politică “Acțiunea Europeană” ( social-political movement “European Action” ) declared a week before the election that they would not participate.
(As of July 22, 2009)
Procedure for voting and counting of votes
The polling stations opened at 7:00 a.m.EST (6:00 a.m. CEST ) and closed at 9:00 p.m. OEST (8:00 p.m. CEST). The number of eligible voters was around 2.6 million. A total of 3,000 foreign election observers monitored the ballot. In the run-up, there was a conflict over eleven Georgian election observers who were refused entry. The authorities said the Georgians were "dangerous" for Moldova. The Moldovan government evidently feared an undesirable influence on the domestic political situation by Georgia, which under President Saakashvili is considered to be decidedly western-oriented and anti-Russian.
The election observers of the Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe (OSCE) said on July 30th that the elections had met international standards and were well organized. Criticism was leveled at the media, which through their subjective engagement had driven the polarization of society in the run-up to the election. The observers sent by the Commonwealth of Independent States had previously stated that they had not found any irregularities.
While most of the opposition parties - in contrast to the election in April 2009 - accepted the result, the Christian Democratic PPCD spoke of numerous irregularities and called for the votes to be recounted. However, this was rejected by the Moldovan Constitutional Court on August 4th.
Election result
forecast
A post-election survey carried out jointly by several political science and demoscopic institutes produced the following forecast:
| Political party | Be right (%) | Seats | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Communist Party of Moldova (PCRM) | 40.5 | 43 | |
| Moldovan Liberal Democratic Party (PLDM) | 17.6 | 19th | |
| Liberal Party (PL) | 16.5 | 18th | |
| Democratic Party of Moldova (PDM) | 12.8 | 13 | |
| Alliance "Our Moldova" (AMN) | 8.0 | 8th | |
| Others | 4.6 | - | |
| Source: e-democracy.md | |||
Official end result
| Political party | be right | Seats | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| number | % | +/- | number | +/- | ||
| Communist Party of Moldova (PCRM) | 706.732 | 44.69 | -4.79 | 48 | -12 | |
| Moldovan Liberal Democratic Party (PLDM) | 262.028 | 16.57 | +4.14 | 18th | +3 | |
| Liberal Party (PL) | 232.108 | 14.68 | +1.55 | 15th | - | |
| Democratic Party of Moldova (PDM) | 198.268 | 12.54 | +9.57 | 13 | +13 | |
| Alliance "Our Moldova" (AMN) | 116.194 | 7.35 | -2.42 | 7th | -4 | |
| Christian Democratic People's Party (PPCD) | 30,236 | 1.91 | -1.13 | - | - | |
| Social Democratic Party (PSD) | 29,434 | 1.86 | -1.84 | - | - | |
| Ecological party "Green Alliance" of Moldova (PEMAVE) | 6,517 | 0.41 | +0.41 | - | - | |
| total | 1,581,517 | 100.00 | 101 | |||
| Eligible voters | 2,708,381 | |||||
| voter turnout | 58.77% | |||||
| Votes cast | 1,591,757 | |||||
| Invalid votes | 10,240 | |||||
| Source: | ||||||
As a result of the significant losses of the PCRM and the entry of the PDM into the new parliament, the previous opposition has a majority of the seats. It is assumed that with the admission of the former parliamentary president Marian Lupu, the PDM gained many votes from former, more western-oriented voters of the PCRM.
Elected MPs
Government formation
On election night, the four previous opposition parties represented in the new parliament (PLDM, PL, PDM and AMN) declared their intention to jointly form a government coalition. Although they together hold a majority of the mandates, they are dependent on votes from the ranks of the communists in order to achieve the three-fifths majority required for the election of the new president.
Communist leader Voronin had previously stated that his party was basically available for a grand coalition of as many parties as possible in order to overcome the political division in the country. In the new parliament, the communists are the only parliamentary group that cannot be dispensed with for the election of a new president. After it became clear that the other parties were taking concrete steps to form a government without the communists, the communists declared their readiness for "tough opposition". Voronin later stated, however, that his party was ready to reach an agreement with the other parties on the election of the new president. In return, the communists claim the post of President of Parliament for themselves. However, the parties of the new coalition want to prevent Voronin from being re-elected to this office.
On August 8, 2009, the party leaders of PLDM, PL, PDM and AMN announced their agreement on a coalition government under the motto "For European integration". The main foreign policy goals of the planned government were the integration of Moldova into the European Union , the restoration of good relations with the neighboring countries Romania and Ukraine and a "strategic partnership" with Russia . An accession of Moldova to NATO is not sought, but cooperation with this z. B. be deepened in the framework of the Partnership for Peace . Moldova should maintain its constitutional neutrality. Domestically, the four parties set themselves the following goals: restoring the rule of law in Moldova, overcoming the social and economic crisis and achieving economic growth, decentralizing state power structures and ensuring regional autonomy rights as well as restoring the territorial integrity of Moldova (solution of the Transnistrian question ). Personnel issues were not discussed up to this point. However, the parties stressed their willingness to enter into a dialogue with the communists on the election of the state president. According to newspaper reports, DPM chairman Marian Lupu is to run as a presidential candidate. Lupu had only switched from the Communists to the DPM a few weeks earlier and could more easily win the approval of Communist MPs than other opposition politicians. The PLDM chairman Vlad Filat is to become prime minister.
A declaration by Vlad Filat on August 20 attracted attention, especially in Russia, when he declared that the government coalition sought would hold a referendum on Moldova's accession to NATO within a few years. Observers expect Moldovan-Russian relations to deteriorate in the event that Moldova seeks to join NATO. Moscow firmly rejects NATO's eastward expansion and, above all, the integration of the former Soviet republics into the North Atlantic Defense Alliance.
Constituent meeting and election of the parliamentary presidium
August 28, 2009 was initially given as the date for the constituent session of the new parliament, and September 10 as a possible date for the election of a new president. The newly elected parliament met for the first time on August 28th. A sharp contrast between the communists (PCRM) and the other parties represented in parliament became clear. At first it was not possible to agree on an agenda. The communists requested that the session be suspended for several days. The communist senior president Ivan Calin then announced the postponement of the meeting to September 4th. The members of the PCRM left the room. The remaining MPs, however, continued the session and elected the party leader of the Partidul Liberal, Mihai Ghimpu , as the new speaker of parliament. The communists protested sharply against what they regarded as a violation of the law by the other parties. PCRM MP Vadim Mișin said that a parliament that began its work by breaking the law had no future other than that of its imminent failure. On September 1, 2009, the PCRM applied to the Constitutional Court to review the election of the President of Parliament for compliance with the Moldovan Constitution. The contestation of the election failed on September 8th, as the constitutional judges could not agree on a majority decision. Three judges considered the election of the President of Parliament to be unconstitutional, and three judges held the opposite opinion. Mihai Ghimpu remains in office. The communists announced on September 9th that they did not want to support a presidential candidate proposed by the other parliamentary groups and presented this as a direct consequence of the events of the constituent parliamentary session.
Parliament met again on September 10th. Against the votes of the communists, it was decided to increase the number of parliamentary vice-presidents from two to four, so that in future each parliamentary group will send a representative to the presidium. The chairman of Alianța Moldova Noastră, Serafim Urechean , was then elected as the first vice-president of the Moldovan parliament, and Iurie Țap (PLDM) and Marcel Răducan (PDM) were further members of the presidium . The communists initially refrained from proposing a candidate for the office of fourth vice-president.
Failure of the election of the president
The political mood of the constituent parliamentary session already indicated a renewed failure of the election of the president by parliament. In this case, the Moldovan constitution provides for new parliamentary elections. At a parliamentary session on November 10, the ruling coalition's candidate, Marian Lupu, failed as a candidate for the office of head of state because the Communist Party deputies refused to approve him. In view of this, the governing parties and, to a large extent, the President of Parliament Mihai Ghimpu tried to amend the constitution. Both a change in the voting procedure for the election of the head of state in parliament and a return to direct election of the president by citizens entitled to vote were named as possible options. In the end, no decision was made. Another election of parliament was announced for autumn 2010 and finally took place on November 28th of that year.
Web links
- Central Electoral Commission of the Republic of Moldova Official website (Romanian, Russian)
- Parliament of the Republic of Moldova Official Website (Romanian)
Individual evidence
- ↑ a b Results of the parliamentary election July 2009 e-democracy.md (Romanian, Russian, English)
- ↑ IA Novosti Moldowa : 29 июля в Молдове пройдут досрочные парламентские выборы ( page can no longer be accessed , search in web archives ) Info: The link was automatically marked as defective. Please check the link according to the instructions and then remove this notice.
- ↑ NZZ online : Communists fail in Moldova
- ↑ Moldova.org: Poll shows Moldovans favor EU entry, less keen on NATO ( Memento of the original of July 21, 2009 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link was automatically inserted and not yet checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice.
- ↑ - ( Memento of the original from July 25, 2009 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link was inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice.
- ↑ http://www.evz.ro/articole/detalii-articol/861284/Voronin-despre-vizele-pentru-romani-/
- ↑ NZZ online : Fight with hooks and eyes in the Moldau
- ↑ a b c Welt Online : Communists before election victory in Moldova
- ↑ Tagesspiegel : Moldova tries a second time with elections
- ↑ e-democracy.md: 51–52 mandates PCRM: 49–50 mandates opoziţia
- ↑ a b c Focus Online : Moldova: Another attempt for parliamentary elections
- ↑ IA Novosti Moldova : Выборы в парламент Молдовы соответствуют всем международным стандартам - the search was automatically defective in the web . The link was no longer available ( ОБСЕблюдатели ОБ ) . Please check the link according to the instructions and then remove this notice.
- ↑ IA Novosti Moldova: Внеочередные выборы в парламент Молдовы были демократическими - миссия СНГ ( no longer available page , search in web archives ) Info: The link is automatically marked as defective. Please check the link according to the instructions and then remove this notice.
- ↑ IA Novosti Moldova : Конституционный суд отказал в пересчете голосов на выборах ( page no longer available , search in web archives ) Info: The link was automatically marked as defective. Please check the link according to the instructions and then remove this notice.
- ↑ NEWSru.com : Оппозиция в Молдавии договорилась о создании правящей коалиции
- ↑ PRCM.md : Вопрос о широкой коалиции поднимать никогда не рано - Владимир Воронин
- ↑ Kommersant : Владимир Воронин подал голоса
- ↑ IA Novosti Moldova: партии Четыре, получившие большинство в парламенте РМ, создали коалицию ( not page more accessible , searching web archives ) Info: The link is automatically marked as defective. Please check the link according to the instructions and then remove this notice.
- ↑ IPN : Четыре демократические партии подписали документ о создании правящей коалиции коалиции к Мприступали Пок Мприступали
- ↑ NZZ online: pro-Western coalition in Moldova
- ↑ russland.RU : Moldova: Head of Parliament accepts every decision of the Constitutional Court
- ↑ Nezavisimaya Gazeta : Молдавия берет курс на НАТО
- ↑ PLDM .md: Vlad Filat la Realitatea FM: Partidele democratice din Moldova anunţă vineri candidaţii pentru preşedinte, premier şi şef al parlamentului
- ↑ IA Novosti Moldova: Михай Гимпу избран спикером молдавского парламента ( Memento of the original from September 2, 2009 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link has been inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice.
- ↑ a b IA Novosti - Moldova: парламент Молдавский, несмотря на объявленный перерыв, начал избирать спикера ( Memento of the original dated 2 September 2009 at the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link is automatically inserted and not yet tested. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice.
- ↑ IA Novosti - Moldova: Депутаты нового парламента начали первое заседание с жесткого противостояния ( Memento of the original dated 2 September 2009 at the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link is automatically inserted and not yet tested. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. , Сторонник объединения с Румынией стал кандидатом в спикеры парламента Молдавии ( Memento of the original dated 2 September 2009 at the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link is automatically inserted and not yet tested. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice.
- ↑ IA Novosti Moldova: У парламента нынешнего созыва нет будущего - ПКРМ ( Memento of the original from August 31, 2009 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link was automatically inserted and not yet checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice.
- ↑ IA Novosti Moldova: Коммунисты Молдовы обжаловали в Конституционном суде избрание председателя парламента ( page no longer available , searching web archives ) Info: The link is automatically marked as defective. Please check the link according to the instructions and then remove this notice.
- ↑ IA Novosti Moldova: Конституционный суд Молдовы признал законным избрание Михая Гимпу спикером парламента ( page no longer available , searching web archives ) Info: The link is automatically marked as defective. Please check the link according to the instructions and then remove this notice.
- ↑ IA Novosti Moldova: ПКРМ не поддержит кандидатуру на пост президента Молдовы от либеральной коалиции ( page no longer available , searching web archives ) Info: The link is automatically marked as defective. Please check the link according to the instructions and then remove this notice.
- ↑ IA Novosti Moldova: Спикер молдавского парламента обзавелся четырьмя заместителями ( page no longer available , search in web archives ) Info: The link was automatically marked as defective. Please check the link according to the instructions and then remove this notice.
- ↑ Focus Online : Moldova: Communists boycott presidential election
- ↑ NEWSru.com : Молдавия меняет Конституцию, чтобы наконец избрать президента страны
