Two weeks before the elections, Moldova’s electoral atmosphere is not that fervent this year, being disturbed by the epidemic anti-records (Moldova numbered ninth in the world list of countries where COVID-19 has spread). In these conditions, will the elections be free and fair? Will they be in conformity with the interests of Moldova or against it?

Unless we take the threats seriously Moldova faces in the upcoming November 1 elections, the country’s situation will be far from easy. Moldovans are facing an undeclared, unseen, and crucial war of political aggression against Moldova’s future. Russia insists on revenge. With the pro-Russian candidates Igor Dodon and Renato Usatii, Moscow seeks to restore its influence over Moldova. Elections are the first step toward it.

The second step will be the Constitution’s Amendment, that the Russian ultranationalist leader Vladimir Zhirinovschi openly declared about in a televised debate with Mikhail Saakashvili, the former Georgian President. Igor Dodon also wishes to change the constitutional regime from parliamentary to presidential, a bicameral parliament in Chișinău, as well as to grant exclusive political powers to breakaway Transnistrian Region and Gagauzia (Autonomous Territorial Unit) to torpedo the Chișinău course of foreign and domestic policy. They seek to neutralize Moldova’s status of independence.

Two months after the presidential election in Belarus, the country’s situation is still volatile. The protests in Minsk continue. The Belarusians do not want to reconcile with the falsification of the August 9 elections. They demand the resignation of President Lukashenko and repeated free elections. Lukashenko opposes, mobilizing the police and security against the protesters. The situation remains complicated.

Things are getting complicated in Kyrgyzstan, where people took to the streets on October 5. They blame the authorities for fraudulent parliamentary elections (vote buying) by parties close to pro-Russian President Sooronbai Jeenbekov. Although the election results in Bishkek were invalidated, the spirits in the country did not calm down. Kyrgyzstan has closed its borders, and special services have launched persecutions against the opposition, accused of attempting a coup. The protests continue.

On November 1, the people of Moldova will come out and vote. No one can foresee what the election results may lead to. However, some opinion leaders do not exclude a repetition of the Belarusian or Kyrgyz scenarios if President Dodon tries to rig the elections. 

A group of Russian policymakers (experts in electoral scenarios) arrived in Moldova last Monday. They came for the sake of Dodon, to assess the situation and lay the ground for election fraud in his favor.

In four years of office, Dodon has not achieved anything visible from his electoral program. He is also avoiding any electoral confrontations with his opponents. Dodon understands that he has no chances in this electoral competition but through fraud.

There are voices among analysts, which deny the idea that the elections could be rigged. The stakes on international observers are very high. However, international observers are guests at the polling stations. However, local observers try to evade their obligations, usually inviting their colleagues to drink or have a cigarette. An unattended ballot box for only two minutes can disrupt a party’s entire election effort (much depends on who controls the mayor’s office politically).

Local observers at polling stations must be like sentries; otherwise, all the effort is in vain.

There is no doubt,  the 17 polling stations in Russia and the 42 polling stations in the Transnistrian Region of Moldova will work for Dodon on election day, for it is not clear who and how will monitor them.  All the question marks that may be arising in this regard should be treated as votes for Dodon.

Moldova reached its crisis point, it is flawed and exterminated by corruption, and it needs a general rehabilitation. Moldova needs a President who will restore its hope for life.  Dodon is the president, who sells himself and will betray the country, making it a servant of Russia.