DISINFO: Maia Sandu did not win the elections in Moldova - they were falsified
SUMMARY
The incumbent president of Moldova, Maia Sandu, has been declared the winner of the elections. She did not win the elections. Strange voter statistics and the exclusion of large groups of voters from the electoral process make it clear how this is possible. (...) More violations could be mentioned, such as censorship, media bans and massive police pressure on the opposition, but these three points alone make the results of the Moldovan presidential elections legally null and void, and both experts and the Moldovan opposition agree on this.
RESPONSE
This unsubstantiated allegation is part of a wider Russian interference campaign in Moldova. Pro-European incumbent Maia Sandu has won a decisive victory in Moldova's presidential run-off election, securing a second term with 54.9% of the vote against her Russia-friendly opponent Alexandr Stoianoglo. While Stoianoglo won more votes within Moldova itself, Sandu's overwhelming support from the diaspora, who cast a record number of more than 325,000 votes, helped secure her victory. The election result reinforces Moldova's pro-Western trajectory, coming just two weeks after the country narrowly voted in favour of joining the European Union.
The election was marked by Russian interference and voter fraud, with Moldovan authorities investigating claims of organised voter transportation and vote-buying schemes. It was Russia who tried to alter the results of the Moldovan election through a series of measures such a disinformation campaigns, buying votes, training Moldovan citizens in paramilitary camps to stage protests, and bussing voters to overseas polling stations. As this did not achieve the results expected by Moscow, pro-Kremlin outlets and Russian officials launched a baseless narrative about electoral fraud. See our article Moscow’s anger and plan for Moldova.
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