Pro-European party wins parliamentary election in Moldova, despite Russian influence

The pro-European party in Moldova won the parliamentary election on Monday, despite Russian influence.

The victory still needs to be made official by Moldova's election commission, but it could further the country's bid to enter the European Union, The New York Times reported.

The pro-EU party of Moldovan President Maia Sandu, the Party of Action and Solidarity, won slightly more than 50% of the vote on Monday morning, when essentially all of the votes had been counted, compared to 24% of the pro-Russian Patriotic Electoral Bloc, which received the second-highest amount of votes.

EU Commission President Ursula von der Leyen posted on X on Monday, "Moldova, you’ve done it again. No attempt to sow fear or division could break your resolve. You made your choice clear: Europe. Democracy. Freedom. Our door is open. And we will stand with you every step of the way. The future is yours."

On Monday, a crowd of several hundred people gathered in front of the parliament in Chisinau to protest and counterprotest. Police had previously warned that they were worried about paid protesters demonstrating against the results.

Following Russia's invasion of Ukraine, which borders Moldova, the country of 2.4 million applied to join the EU. Last October, Moldovans narrowly approved a referendum that enshrined support for joining the bloc into the nation's Constitution, 50.4% to 49.5%.

Russia poured hundreds of millions of dollars into buying off voters and pushing disinformation, according to the Party of Action and Solidarity.

As voters headed to the polls on Sunday, the Moldovan government reported cyberattacks on electoral systems and hoax bomb threats at expatriate voting sites in cities including Rome; Brussels; Bucharest, Romania; and Asheville, N.C. Moldovan expatriates in Western countries are critical support for pro-European politicians.

The police said they detained three people suspected of planning to create chaos at a protest after the election, and had “pyrotechnics and inflammables” in their car.