Moldovan electoral body asks Appeal Court exclusion presidential candidate from electoral race

Chisinau, 20 October /MOLDPRES/ – Central Election Commission (CEC) today asked the Court of Appeal to examine cancellation of registration of the candidate for president of Moldova Inna Popenco from the party Ravnopravie (Equality of rights).

According to CEC’s press service, the decision comes in the context of examining the appeal lodged with the Commission by candidate Silvia Radu, who reveals that Inna Popenco used in the presidential elections campaign undeclared funds.

According to the financial report presented to CEC, the candidate Inna Popenco from the party Ravnopravie (Equality of rights) spent in the first two campaign weeks over two million lei. Also at today's meeting, the independent candidate Silvia Radu said that "contestant Inna Popenco’s representatives recently organized an event where voters were given each a free discount card to a social shop, to be opened soon. At the same time, the sources of these cards or discounts were not indicated," said Silvia Radu.

At her part, the candidate for head of state Inna Popenco said that social reaction to the opening of shops manifested that electoral opponents did not care about people's problems, while the Commission was being influenced by unsubstantiated claims. "The decision is a shameful lawlessness of authorities towards electoral law and my rights as a candidate for president of Moldova", says the press release of Ravnopravie (Equality of rights) party.

Inna Popenco was registered in the electoral race on 26 September 2016.