The country is extremely polarized, with the diaspora and the capital on one side overwhelmingly in favor of the European cause, and rural areas and two regions turned towards Russia on the other.
Moldovans vote on Sunday to choose their president and confirm or deny their European destiny. Outgoing head of state Maia Sandu, a fervent 52-year-old pro-Westerner who turned her back on Moscow after the invasion of neighboring Ukraine, faces Alexandr Stoianoglo, a former prosecutor backed by the pro-Russian socialists.
Without venturing into numerical prognostications this time, analysts are all predicting a close battle with, as during the legislative elections in Georgia, another former Soviet republic, fears of Russian interference despite firm denials from the Kremlin.
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Ms. Sandu came out well ahead on October 20 with 42.5% of the vote, but her 57-year-old rival, who took almost 26%, can count on the support of several smaller candidates. Polls open at 07:00 (05:00 GMT) and close at 21:00, with the first partial results expected an hour later.
“The course towards European integration“
Between the two rounds, the presidential camp stepped up its campaign on social networks and in the villages in an attempt to counter the massive vote-buying which, according to the authorities, tainted the results of the referendum, which was much more closely contested than expected (50.35% for the “yes” vote).
In spite of a fight described as a “battle of theunfair“, “we have taken the first step“Maia Sandu was delighted. “We still have to win the elections on Sunday, and then set course for European integration by 2030.“she said, as accession negotiations were formally opened in June.
In her final message to the 2.6 million inhabitants, the former World Bank economist called for mobilization so that “honest ballots“have the last word.
“Don’t give in to con artists”: the message was hammered home in the final days of a tense campaign. “If you are offered money to vote against a candidate, refuse.“, police warned, in telephone warnings or even over loudspeakers in supermarkets.
Opposite him, Mr. Stoianoglo, with a smooth speech in which Russian words often mingle with the official Romanian language, promised to be “the president of all“, advocating a balanced foreign policy that “will not divide society“.
An election closely watched from Brussels to Washington
In Chisinau, a 56-year-old pensioner, Acsenia, speaking on condition of anonymity, regrets that “Soviet smells still permeate to the bone“this former USSR state. It is “Maia Sandu to guide us along the right path, alongside the great and free powers of Europe, far from the kind of dictatorship that some are trying to impose on us.“.
But others, like 75-year-old Zinovia Zaharovna, refuse to merge into the EU, insisting on the need to remain “independent“. “Many also fear being drawn into the war“explains Andrei Curararu of the WatchDog think tank to AFP. They will therefore prefer “a candidate on good terms with Moscow, seeing this as a guarantee of not being attacked“.
The election is being closely watched from Brussels to Washington, where there are concerns about Russia’s attempt to disrupt the electoral process.