Maia Sandu set to win 2nd term as Moldovan president

By Burc Eruygur

ISTANBUL (AA) - Moldova’s incumbent President Maia Sandu is set to win a second term in office following Sunday’s presidential runoff, near-complete results showed.

Moldova’s Central Election Commission (CEC) said in a briefing on Monday that Sandu won 55.41% of the vote, while her rival Alexander Stoianoglo, a former prosecutor general, gained 44.59% after 99.86% of the ballots were counted.

The CEC said almost 1.7 million Moldovans voted in the second round, corresponding to 54.31% of the electorate.

Votes that came from the country's diaspora were decisive in Sandu’s lead, as the CEC said Stoianoglo gained over 51% of the vote while Sandu managed almost 49% based on domestic voting.

But from the expats, Sandu received 82.77% -- about 270,000 votes.

Voting in the run-off began at 7 a.m. local time (0500GMT) and continued until 9 p.m. (1900GMT) across 2,219 polling stations on Sunday, 231 of which were located abroad in 37 countries.

“Today, dear Moldovans, you offered a lesson in democracy ... Moldova managed to show its will and power through the vote of each of us. We proved that united we can defeat those who wanted to bring us to our knees,” Sandu told a press briefing late Sunday.

She argued that her country was under an "unprecedented attack" in European history, reiterating accusations of external influence, particularly by Moscow, that have been voiced since the first round of the election. Russia had rejected the accusations.

"I appreciate the call to unity on behalf of counter-candidate Alexandr Stoianoglo. We will continue developing Moldova in peace and democracy. Together with all Moldovans and for all Moldovans," Sandu added.

The runoff followed an initial round of voting held two weeks ago, in which Sandu, who is viewed as pro-Western, fell short of securing 50% of the ballots needed to win a second term.

The election was marked by accusations of external influence, particularly by Sandu, who accused "criminal groups" of trying to buy 300,000 votes based on "clear" evidence.

Russia had reacted to Sandu's accusations, with Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov challenging her to provide evidence of the alleged interference.