From triumph to despair: unexpected results of the presidential elections and referendum in Moldova.

Incumbent Maia Sandu, a member of the pro-European party, received 41.84% of the vote, but this was not enough to win the first round of elections. This is evidenced by data from the Central Election Commission, which processed 97.88% of the votes.

In second place was Sandu’s opponent, Alexander Stoianoglo from the pro-Russian Party of Socialists, who received 26.35% of the vote. Third place went to Renato Usatii, former mayor of Balti, with a score of 13.77%.

Maia Sandu accused opponents during her speech at the headquarters of “unprecedented falsifications” and announced attempts by “criminal groups” to buy 300 thousand votes. She expressed confidence that there is concrete evidence of this “fraud” and the strengthening threat to freedom and democracy.

According to preliminary data, two candidates will participate in the second round of elections, possibly on November 3, 2024.

On October 20, a referendum on Moldova’s accession to the European Union was also held. The results showed an almost equal distribution of votes: 49.86% “for” changes to the Constitution and 50.14% “against”. Only 42.44% of voters took part in the referendum.