Published November 03,2024
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Moldovans headed to the polls on Sunday in a runoff presidential election shadowed by allegations of Russian interference, raised by incumbent president.
Voting started at 7 am native time (0500GMT) and can proceed till 9 pm (1900GMT) throughout 2,219 polling stations, together with 231 areas overseas spanning 37 international locations. According to Moldova’s Central Election Commission, over 2,400 nationwide and worldwide observers have been accredited to observe the vote.
The runoff follows the primary spherical of voting held two weeks in the past, the place President Maia Sandu, seen as pro-Western, fell in need of securing a majority for a second time period.
In Sunday’s election, she faces a problem from Alexandr Stoianoglo, Moldova’s former prosecutor normal.
The election coincides with a latest referendum the place voters narrowly permitted a constitutional modification to set Moldova on a path towards European Union membership.
However, each the election and the referendum have been contentious, with Sandu accusing “criminal groups” allegedly backed by “foreign forces hostile to our national interests” of trying to disrupt the nation’s democratic course of to maintain the nation “trapped in uncertainty and instability.”
“We have clear evidence that these criminal groups aimed to buy 300,000 votes-a fraud of unprecedented scale. Their objective was to undermine a democratic process. Their intention is to spread fear and panic in the society,” Sandu said on X.
The accusations have drawn a response from the Kremlin, with Russian spokesman Dmitry Peskov difficult Sandu to provide concrete proof of the alleged interference.
Source: www.anews.com.tr