Europe celebrates Moldova’s pro-EU win in election

Thank goodness — that was Europe’s relief on Monday morning when news broke that Moldova’s pro-European ruling party had defeated pro-Russian parties in a contentious parliamentary election seen as a narrow but decisive win for Moldova’s pro-EU course over Moscow’s influence.

The win comes amid what experts and officials have described as unprecedented Russian interference — or effectively a multi-factor hybrid war aimed at undermining Moldova’s reform agenda and steering it away from its pro-European path. 

But preliminary results show voters had not given up on Moldova's European dream.

With almost all polling station reports counted, electoral data showed that the pro-European Action and Solidarity Party won 50.1 percent of votes, while the pro-Russian Patriotic Electoral Bloc received 24.2 percent.

The results were immediately welcomed by Western officials, who had vocally supported Moldovan leader Maia Sandu. 

"Despite Russia’s massive efforts to spread disinformation and buy votes, no force can stop a people committed to freedom," said EU foreign affairs chief Kaja Kallas.

“It took real courage of the Moldovan nation and Maia Sandu personally to win this election. Not only did you save democracy and kept the European course, but you have also stopped Russia in its attempts to take control over the whole region,” Polish prime minister Donald Tusk said on social media.

For his part, EU council president António Costa said that the people of Moldova chose “democracy, reform, and a European future in the face of pressure and interference from Russia”.

Costa also pledged EU support to Moldova on “every step of the way”.

"The future of Moldova is in Europe! On this historic step forward, the people of Moldova have chosen the path of democracy, hope and opportunities," said EU Parliament president Roberta Metsola.

From Washington, Republican congressman Carlos Giménez, who sits on the House Armed Services Committee, posted on X: “From the US Congress, we extend our congratulations to Maia Sandu of Moldova, who has once again secured a majority in parliament and will lead her nation’s further integration with Europe, Nato, and Western democracies.”

Moldova clearly matters to Putin, judging by Russia’s efforts to rig the election, which had reportedly spent over one per cent of Moldova’s GDP trying to sway the vote through disinformation and other influence operations.

With fugitive billionaire Ilan Șor allegedly pulling strings from Moscow, tactics have included paid social media campaigns for the Patriotic Bloc, paramilitary-trained thugs to stir unrest, and Şor offering $3,000 [€2,559] monthly to protesters — nearly four times the average Moldovan salary of $800.

“Moldova’s pro-European victory is a lesson for all of Europe on how to defeat Russian interference,” said centre-right Romanian MEP Siegfried Mureșan, who is also the chair of the parliament's delegation for Moldova.

And he warned that Moscow “will not stop” at Moldova’s border and will continue trying to influence elections across Europe.

Romanian liberal MEP and member of the OSCE election observation mission to Moldova, Dan Barna, also said: "There is nothing more patriotic than a people who decide their own future in spite of a dictator's imperialist dreams. And the EU needs to deliver on its promise.”

Days before the parliamentary elections, Sandu warned that Russia could pull Moldova into “a grey zone” and make it “a regional risk.”

According to her, the Kremlin has been seeking to gain control of the movement in Chișinău in order to oppose Ukraine and certain EU member states.

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