Moldova Narrowly Votes to Join the EU, Election Interference Claims Come From Both Sides

Moldova narrowly voted to amend its constitution to include joining the European Union as a national goal, after a last-minute “dump” of ballots from Moldovans living abroad swung the vote to favor the addendum.

The Details: The vote finished 50.4% to 49.6% with roughly 2,000 votes deciding the outcome. Pro-EU President Maia Sandu was also up for re-election, and Sunday’s vote sent the presidential contest to a runoff against Alexandr Stoianoglo, who has received the support of some pro-Russian parties.

For Context: Moldova is a tiny country between Romania and Ukraine that speaks both Romanian and Russian. In recent years, it has gone back and forth between favoring closer ties with Russia or the West. Western media and officials have often accused Russia of trying to influence the country’s elections. 

Election Interference: President Sandu described Sunday’s election as “unfair” and having an “unprecedented” amount of Russian interference, as the pro-EU referendum was expected to pass easily, but only did so narrowly.

The Other Side: ZeroHedge (Lean Right bias) included an X post from a Russian official who wrote, “Moldovan authorities opened only two polling stations in Moscow for 400,000 Moldovan citizens living in Russia (instead of 17 in the past).”

What It Means: Politico (Lean Left bias) described the narrow victory as “a sobering reality check for the European Union” which is losing ground in its influence war against Russia. In its headline, Newsweek (Center bias) called the result a “blow to Putin” but cadenced its article by writing, “the shaky win has left that position looking weaker than before.”