CHISINAU, May 19. /TASS/. Ilan Shor, head of the Moldovan opposition bloc Pobeda believes the West fixed the Romanian presidential election, and more of the same can be expected at Moldova's parliamentary elections.
"The West pulled the same dirty trick in the elections in Romania. The opposition was squeezed out, the pro-European diaspora was involved, and the loser was forced to accept the rigged result. This wasn't an election. The real election happened six months ago. What we saw now was a staged performance with a prearranged outcome. Obviously, this underhanded scheme will also work in the parliamentary elections in Moldova," Shor wrote on his Telegram channel.
"Sandu openly campaigned for [the pro-European candidate] Nicusor [Dan]. Others acted clandestinely. The French, for example, tried to exert pressure through Telegram," Shor said, referring to Moldovan president Maia Sandu.
Shor said the opposition would do everything it could to ensure a fair vote in Moldova.
Independent candidate Dan won the May 18 presidential election in Romania, securing 53.60% of the vote. His rival, the leader of the nationalist Alliance for the Union of Romanians George Simion, received 46.40%. Dan will be head of state for the next five years.
This election was a rerun. The Constitutional Court previously ruled to annul the results of last year's election after nationalist candidate Calin Georgescu had received a majority of votes in the first round on November 24, citing illegal financing of Georgescu’s campaign, hacker attacks on the digital electoral infrastructure and alleged but unproven Russian interference.
Although this unprecedented step sparked a scandal both in Romania and abroad, the government supported the Constitutional Court's decision and scheduled a second presidential election for May 4 and 18, 2025.