Moldova's electoral system changed

Chisinau, 20 July /MOLDPRES/ - The parliament adopted the draft law on the change of the electoral system in the final reading today. Seventy four lawmakers voted for the mixed electoral system.  

The draft was considered and voted just in the beginning of the plenary meeting, after the head of the parliament’s commission for rules and immunities, Raisa Apolschi, said that the document had been earlier subjected to more public discussions and was amended in line with the Venice Commission’s recommendations.

According to the amendments made to the legislation, the electoral districts will be set up by an independent commission, made up of representatives of all parliamentary and extra-parliamentary political parties, experts demographers, geographers, representatives of the academic environment, civil society, local public authorities, Central Electoral Commission, national minorities and the People’s Assembly of the Autonomous Territorial Unit of Gagauzia.  

Under the law, 51 MPs will be elected on party lists and another 50 – based on the uninominal voting. The decisions on the formation of the uninominal electoral districts will be published in the Official Journal one year before the elections. Also, the law sees that one and the same village will not be able to be part of different uninominal districts.   

To run for a seat in parliament, the electoral contenders will be obliged to make public their wealth and present a certificate of integrity, due to be issued by the National Integrity Agency.

The electoral margin for the electoral bloc made up of two or more parties will be diminished to 8 per cent following the change of the voting system.

Today morning, the faction of the Liberal Party at a news briefing said that it would not back the mixed electoral system. As a token of protest, the Party of Communists walked out of the session hall before the voting procedure.

Concomitantly with the plenary meeting, rallies for and against the change of the electoral system took place outside the parliament building. Several hundreds of supporters of the Action and Solidarity Party, Dignity and Truth Platform Party, Our Party and National Unity Party protested against the change of the electoral system. Several thousands of persons from Chisinau and Moldovan districts demonstrated to support the mixed electoral system.   

(Reporter A. Zara, editor L. Alcaza)