It is expected that the fall elections in the autonomous region will be held under the proportional representation system in effect in the rest of the country.
This was announced at a meeting between President Maia Sandu, members of the Moldovan Parliament, and the Central Election Commission with representatives of the Gagauz People’s Assembly.
As noted in a statement from the presidential administration, the Constitutional Court had previously ruled that the electoral system must be uniform throughout the country and regulated by organic law, since the Republic of Moldova is a unitary state.
Consequently, the mechanism for organizing elections in the autonomous region—which had been previously agreed upon by a working group but was never approved by the People’s Assembly of Gagauzia—no longer complies with the Constitutional Court’s current legal position.
The bill is scheduled to be adopted before the elections
The meeting discussed holding elections to the People’s Assembly using a proportional representation system similar to that used in elections for the Parliament, district councils, and local councils.
The Presidential Administration reported that some of the People’s Assembly deputies who participated in the meeting supported this approach.
To implement the Constitutional Court’s decision, Parliament will need to amend the Electoral Code. The bill is scheduled to be considered on an expedited basis to ensure that elections in Gagauzia are held this fall in accordance with the updated regulations.
The meeting also addressed the further delineation of powers between the central government and the autonomous region’s authorities as part of the implementation of the law on Gagauzia’s special legal status.
According to the Presidential Administration, consultations on this issue will continue. A separate meeting with the mayors of the autonomous region’s municipalities is scheduled for July 21.
