Moldova’s diaspora tipped scales in presidential runoff
CHISINAU, Moldova—Moldovans living abroad voted in record numbers in a presidential runoff that secured victory for pro-Western President Maia Sandu, in a pivotal race that pitted her against a Russia-friendly opponent amid ongoing claims of Russian interference, voter fraud, and intimidation.
Sandu’s win, on a campaign promise to advance Moldova’s candidacy for European Union membership, was a major boon for the pro-Western government, which strongly backed her candidacy.
However, her opponents claim her victory relied too much on Moldovans living outside the country—which has a population of about 2.5 million, excluding expatriates—to be considered legitimate.
With 100 percent of ballots counted in the second round of Sunday’s presidential election, Sandu obtained 55.33 percent of the vote, according to the Central Electoral Commission, compared to 44.67 percent for Alexandr Stoianoglo, who was backed by the pro-Russia Party of Socialists.
‘President of diaspora’
A record number of 327,000 voters cast ballots abroad in the runoff, more than 82 percent of whom favored Sandu. But inside Moldova, Stoianoglo, a former prosecutor general, obtained 51.3 percent of the vote, compared to Sandu’s 48.67 percent.
Although the former Soviet republic signed a deal with the EU in 2014 to forge closer political and economic ties, years of rampant corruption and lack of reform hindered development, and an exodus of hundreds of thousands of citizens sought better futures abroad.
Former president Igor Dodon, the leader of the pro-Moscow Party of Socialists, was quick to question Sandu’s electoral victory, saying she has become “a president of the diaspora” and suggested it undermined the vote, noting Stoianoglo “won the presidential elections inside the country.”
