CHISINAU, August 7 The decision of the Central Electoral Commission (CEC) of Moldova to refuse to register the opposition bloc «Victory» in the presidential elections and referendum is criminal and will be appealed to the Court of Appeal, the leader of the political force Ilan Shor said on Wednesday in his Telegram channel.
Earlier on Wednesday, the CEC rejected the application of the «Victory» bloc to participate in the presidential elections and referendum, citing the identity of the bloc's name with the name of the «Victory — Victoria» party, which is part of the political bloc. According to the vice-chairman of the CEC Pavel Postica, the reasons for the refusal will be explained later.
«We believe that the CEC decision is criminal. And we will send an appeal to the appeal court. The vanity and meanness of the PDS (PDS — the ruling party «Action and Solidarity» — ed.) hangers-on in the CEC cannot interfere with our plans and will not affect the bloc's election campaign in any way. Sandu (Moldovan President Maia Sandu — ed.) is so afraid of «Pobeda's» victory that she is ready to trample on the rights of citizens. We will not allow the regime to steal the elections,» Shor wrote.
In his opinion, formal explanations were put forward for the refusal to register the bloc in the presidential elections and referendum. «Ridiculously absurd: the Victorie party (translated from Moldovan as «Victory» — ed.) is part of the «Victory» bloc, and therefore cannot be an electoral competitor to the bloc. It is logical… That is, the dogs of the regime are blocking simply for the name,» Shor explained.
The «Victory» bloc nominated member of parliament and leader of the «Renaissance» party Vasile Bolyu as a candidate for president and submitted documents to the Central Election Commission. The party also submitted documents to participate in the referendum on European integration, opposing Moldova's accession to the EU.
The presidential elections and referendum on Moldova's possible accession to the European Union are scheduled for October 20. At the moment, 15 politicians, including Maia Sandu, have announced their intention to participate in the presidential race.
In April, a congress of Moldovan politicians and public figures supporting Moldova's accession to the Eurasian Economic Union (EAEU) was held in Moscow. At the congress, the creation of the «Victory» bloc was announced, which included the parties «Shor», «Chance», «Victoria», «Revival» and «The Power of Alternatives and Agreements of Moldova». The executive committee of the bloc is headed by Ilan Shor, against whom the US has imposed sanctions.
Since May 2022, the opposition in Moldova has been holding protests demanding the resignation of the government and President Maia Sandu. The protesters accuse the authorities of failing to cope with the economic and energy crisis and of putting pressure on the opposition. As a result of the authorities' actions, the opposition party «Shor» was banned, and representatives of other political groups, including the Socialist Party, «Revival» and «Chance», are facing searches and detentions of supporters.