Moldovan Central Election Commission confirms Dodon's victory in presidential elections
CHISINAU. Nov 14 (Interfax) - Moldovan Central Election Commission Chairperson Alina Russu confirmed the victory of Party of Socialists leader Igor Dodon in the presidential elections.
"Compliant to the law, Igor Dodon, who gained a majority of votes in the runoff elections on Sunday, becomes the president of Moldova," Russu said at a press conference on Monday.
"Now that 99.9% of votes have been counted, Party of Socialists leader Igor Dodon gains 835,010 votes or 52.29%, while the single candidate of right-wing pro-European parties, Maia Sandu, wins 761,934 votes or 47.71%. The voter turnout stood at at least 1,610,527 in the runoff elections or 53.48% of all eligible voters," the chairperson said.
She said the information was preliminary; as of then 99.9% of votes had been counted. The Central Election Commission has yet to receive information from two polling stations, in the United States and in France.
The Central Election Commission has started to receive original documents and will now summarize official results of the elections. This will be done within five days, after which the commission shall submit the documents to the Constitutional Court within three days. The Constitutional Court will have ten days to approve the outcome of elections and to confirm the powers of the president.
Voters were most active in Chisinau, where turnout topped 58%, she said. Approximately 134,155 voters cast their ballots at 100 polling stations abroad, compared to less than 67,000 in the first round.
Dodon announced his election victory at a press briefing at midnight. Sandu has yet to comment on the election results. The Sandu staff told Interfax she would express her opinion on Monday. The staff did not rule out Sandu might demand that votes be re-counted.
