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OPINION POLL SHOWS THAT NEW PARLIAMENT OF MOLDOVA WILL CONSIST OF REPRESENTATIVES OF FOUR PARTIES

26 november, 2018
OPINION POLL SHOWS THAT NEW PARLIAMENT OF MOLDOVA WILL CONSIST OF REPRESENTATIVES OF FOUR PARTIES

Had a parliamentary election in Moldova been held next Sunday on the basis of the proportional representation system, seats in the new legislative forum would be won by the Party of Socialists (PSRM), the Democratic Party (DP), the Party of Action and Solidarity (PAS), and the political party called Platform “Demnitate si Adevar” [DA, “Dignity and Justice”], as per the findings of the opinion poll carried out recently by the Association of Sociologists and Demographers of Moldova and presented at Infotag on Monday.

According to the research, 32.7% respondents are ready to vote for the PSRM, 11.5% -- for the Democrats, 10.8% for the PAS, and 10% for the DA Platform.

The rest political parties would be not able to clear the electoral threshold of 6% namely the Ilan Shor Party would receive 2.9%, Our Party – 2.3%, the Communist Party 1.9%. As many as 18.5% citizens are still uncertain about their electoral choice, and 7.3% stated they would not go to the polls.

If to take only ‘decided’ respondents, the PSRM would receive 44.1%, the DP – 15.5%, the PAS – 14.5%, and the DA Platform – 13.5%.

The Association Chairman Victor Mocanu pointed out the impressive growth of the Ilan Shor Party’s popularity rating from 1% two months ago up to 2.9% presently, and the Democratic Party’s ascending to the 2nd place.

“In our previous researches, the Democratic Party used to rank 3rd or 4th. Presently, the population has been impressed most of all with the Democratic Party’s Program “Good Roads for Moldova”. The Democrats are very much noticeable in the press. Party leaders extensively visit Moldovan localities, and they have launched reforms that have already given positive results or will definitely give in the future. Citizens are saying that the Democrats want to change the situation in the country for the better”, said Mocanu.

Eugen Stirbu, Director of the Chisinau Branch of the International Institute for Monitoring the Development of Democracy, Parliamentarism and Electoral Rights of Citizens in the Member Countries of the Parliamentary Assembly of the Commonwealth of Independent States, said that as for single-member constituencies, sociologists will be able to carry out such a research in them only in one month after the announcement of all candidates in them.       
The rating of trust in Moldova’s political figures, indicated in a closed list, is headed (as previously) by Moldovan President Igor Dodon who is trusted by 52.1% respondents. Following him is Prime Minister Pavel Filip with 28%, then goes PAS leader Maya Sandu with 24.5%, the DA Platform leader Andrei Nastase with 22.8%, PSRM Chairwoman Zinaida Greceanii – 21.2%, DP leader Vlad Plahotniuc – 19.6%, and MCP leader Vladimir Voronin with 17.6%.  

But when the respondents were asked to name by themselves the politicians they trust, Igor Dodon received slightly over a quarter of replies in his favor, Premier Filip – 8.2%, Maya Sandu 6.5%, Andrei Nastase 5.3%, Greceanii and Plahotniuc – 4.6% each.

The number of adherents to the Moldova’s accession to the Eurasian Economic Union [of Russia, Belarus, Kazakhstan, Armenia and Kyrgyzstan, EAES] is slightly higher than the supporters of EU association.

If the referendum on the accession to one of politico-economic unions took in Moldova next Sunday, 41.5% electors would vote for the EAES, while 38.7% – for the EU. With all this, 5.6% respondents did not choose any of the two organizations, 6.5% said they would not go voting, while 7.7% did not answer the question.

At an equivalent plebiscite on the Moldova’s accession to the NATO, 22.4% respondents would vote for the accession, while 60.1% - against.

Poverty, corruption, foodstuff prices and utility tariffs are the main questions alarming Moldova citizens the most.    

Poverty alarms 34.4% respondents; corruption in all spheres of life and the bank fraud – 23%; high foodstuff prices and utility tariffs (particularly for centralized heating) – 21.1%; migration and a worsening demographic situation – 18.5%; the future of one’s children and of the native country – 17.7%; political crisis – 17.3%; economic situation – 16.9%; public health – 16%.

The pollsters have established that the share of citizens believing that the situation in the republic is developing in a wrong direction has slightly diminished – from 74.9% last September to 71.4% in November. But these figures are still far from those shown in March 2017, when a negative situation was indicated by ‘only’ 60.9% interviewed citizens.

According to Association Chairman Victor Mocanu, by the “wrong direction” the respondents mean the ongoing reforms that influence directly on living standards, and mean also that before the Independence of 1991 they used to live better than now, and that a part of respondents mean the country’s current geopolitical vector.  

A majority of interviewed citizens regard the reforms being implemented in Moldova as inefficient ones. Only 2.1% of them believe the reforms are effective, 27.7% -- effective a little, 49.2% -- practically ineffective, and 18.1% -- “just useless”. However, last few months the population’s attitude to reforms has been changing for the better, the pollsters said.      

The respondents appreciate most of all the activities of local governance organs (42%), the situation in the culture sphere – 38.3%, the education reform – 36.8%, Moldova’s foreign policy – 33.7%, the reform of central authorities – 29.8%, the situation in the sphere of struggle against corruption – 29.2%.

And the respondents’ greatest discontents were with the judiciary reform (76.8%), the pension reform (72.1%), the bank reform (70.1%), situation of the Transnistrian conflict settlement process (69.4%), and the situation of the economy as a whole (69.3%).   
 
Mocanu underlined that upon the whole, the Moldovan population has a negative attitude to reforms in the republic. “However, if to take a concrete sphere and the reforms in it in isolation from the rest ones, the respondents’ opinion appears to be not so categorical or unambiguous”, he said.

The poll was carried out on request of the Chisinau Branch of the International Institute for Monitoring the Development of Democracy, Parliamentarism and Electoral Rights of Citizens in the Member Countries of the Parliamentary Assembly of the Commonwealth of Independent States on November 1 through 20 among 1,189 respondents residing permanently in 83 various-type populated areas across the republic, except the Transnistrian region. The pollsters are saying the error should not be in the excess of ±3%.

 OVER 68% CITIZENS SAY POLITICAL PARTIES SHOULD NOT BE FUNDED FROM BUDGET

Over 68% of citizens maintain that political parties may maintain themselves at the expense of membership dues and thus they can prove their viability.

According to Chairman of the Association of Sociologists and Demographers of Moldova Victor Mocanu, who presented the results of a corresponding research at Infotag on Monday, 73.3% respondents stand for raising the number of polling stations abroad.

Around 73% of people say that media outlets should be punished for unbalanced covering of election campaign, while 92.1% support the punishment for bribing electors. 67.5% more stand for reducing the role of the Church in election campaign.

Almost one-half of respondents (49.2%) would like to use electronic system of voting at polling stations instead of the traditional paper voting bulletins, while 38% do not tolerate such an innovation. Almost three-fourths would like to have the possibility to vote at any polling station, while 58.5% - to vote via internet. Meanwhile, over one-half of respondents said that the possibility to vote via internet raises the chances that they will participate in the voting.

Around 55% maintain that there were insufficient public consultations before the transition to the mixed election system, while 17.7% say that there were enough debates.

Mocanu said that the share of those, who support the idea of reducing the number of MPs fell 20% since February 2016 and accounts for 72.5%.

"This is connected with the fact that people start understanding the role of the parliament and how important is to have educated deputies, who will be driven by country interests. Most of experts (around 80%) stand against the reduction of the number of MPs, as this will lead to worsening of the quality of legislature's work", he said.

Most of respondents (76.8%) maintain that MPs should renounce his mandate if he leaves the party faction they were elected from. Also, 70.5% stand for conducting of a referendum on canceling the parliamentary immunity, which is almost 8% more than in May 2016.

The poll was carried out on request of the Chisinau Branch of the International Institute for Monitoring the Development of Democracy, Parliamentarism and Electoral Rights of Citizens in the Member Countries of the Parliamentary Assembly of the Commonwealth of Independent States on November 1 through 20 among 1,189 respondents residing permanently in 83 various-type populated areas across the republic, except the Transnistrian region. The pollsters are saying the error should not be in the excess of В±3%.

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