Russian interference has failed in Moldova, to Europe’s relief

On the Moldovan parliamentary elections, Professor Wolff said:

“With almost all of the votes counted in a low turnout election, the ruling pro-European PAS party of President Maia Sandu has achieved a slim overall majority of just over 50% of the vote. More importantly, perhaps, it has garnered more than twice the votes of the main pro-Russian opposition party, Patriotic Bloc, which has just under 25% of the vote. While PAS did very well in the diaspora vote with almost 80% of votes cast in its favour, it also convincingly beat the Patriotic Bloc in the vote in Moldova with 44% versus 28%.

“Despite deepening polarisation in Moldova between pro-European and pro-Russian camps, PAS’s performance indicates that its support base has held up remarkably well amid unprecedented Russian election interference and the serious economic problems that Moldova has faced for many years, but especially since the start of Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine in February 2022. If the results of other parties and party blocs that claim to be pro-European are taken into account, this means a solid majority of Moldovans favour membership in the EU over closer ties with Russia.

“The outcome of the parliamentary elections yesterday, as well as of the presidential elections last year, also demonstrates the limits of Russia’s influence campaigns. Despite spending millions on vote buying and disinformation, Russia has not been able to turn Moldova into a country in which a majority of the population would want to jeopardise their European future for closer ties with Russia. This is an important signal well beyond Moldova and will be noted with significant relief in Brussels and other European capitals.”