​VOTING SYSTEM WILL NOT BE CHANGED IN CASE OF SNAP ELECTIONS – CONSTITUTIONAL COURT

The Constitutional Court considered the request from three independent members of the Moldovan Parliament and decided that in case of early parliamentary elections, the voting will be conducted on the basis of mixed system.

“The Parliament may change the election system only during one mandate [4 years]. The new voting system may be implemented only in case of regular parliamentary elections, while the changes may be conducted at least a year before elections”, says the CC decision.

According to him, frequent change of the election system may damage citizens, parties and other election competitors, as well as leads to risks of violating citizens’ right to elect and be elected.

As Infotag has already reported, three independent MPs, elected to the new Moldovan Parliament – Ion Groza, Alexandru Oleinic and Viorel Melnic, addressed to the CC. Their address is connected with the right-wing opposition’s intention to achieve change of the voting system. Authors of the request maintain that the change of election system for conducting early elections violates the principles of the law-governed state, the right of free and democratic conducting of elections, as well as recommendations of international organizations.

The returning to proportionate election system is a part of election package on Moldova de-oligarchization, proposed by the right-wing political bloc ACUM. According to representatives of the bloc, the adoption of the mixed system, on the basis of which the current parliament was elected, is a mistake as it is advantageous only to the Democratic Party.

The mixed election system was adopted in Moldova in late August 2017 by votes of MPs from the Democratic Party and the Party of Socialists. Meanwhile, Socialists do not deny the possibility of returning to the proportionate system, while the Democratic Party is categorically against it.