Moldovan CEC denies registration to political party linked to fugitive oligarch
The political party "Renaștere" failed to secure the necessary number of votes to be registered for the parliamentary elections on September 28, 2025.
As a result, at its meeting on Friday, August 15, the Central Election Commission (CEC) did not approve the registration request from the political group affiliated with fugitive oligarch Ilan Șor. During the same session, CEC members approved the candidate lists for the National Moldovan Party (PNM) and the European Social Democratic Party (PSDE).
Before the vote on the draft decision on the registration of the "Renaștere" Party was held, CEC President Angelica Caraman stated during the meeting that the institution had received "a court ruling informing us that the procedure for examining this request to limit the political party's activity has been expedited, and we are, therefore, aware of the consequences."
The rapporteur, Vasile Postolache, clarified that the party's documents were in order and there was an opinion from the Public Services Agency, but a definitive court decision was still pending. In this context, Caraman proposed registration with a provisional clause allowing for revocation in the event of a court ruling to suspend the party's activity. The proposal was rejected with one "for" vote, six "against," and two abstentions.
During the discussions, CEC Vice-President Pavel Postica asked "Renaștere" leader Vasile Bolea for a guarantee that the party would not repeat last year's actions by secretly participating in an electoral bloc. Postica was referring to the coordinated support that "Renaștere" received during the constitutional referendum campaign in the fall of 2024 from other parties within the "Victorie-ПОБЕДА" political bloc — the political party "Forța de Alternativă și de Salvare a Moldovei," "Victorie," and "Șansă," even though only "Renaștere" was officially registered to participate in the campaign.
"This time, we will also comply with the provisions of the law, and obviously, we won't break it. Where we are seen, we will assume the consequences... Believe me, we are being made to be respectful of the law and those provisions that came into force this June," Bolea replied.
The request to register the "Renaștere" Party's candidates was not approved, rejected by a vote of five "against," three "for," and one abstention. The CEC president stated that the case would be re-examined at a later meeting, no later than seven days, and would be taken over by a different rapporteur.
For the National Moldovan Party and the European Social Democratic Party, registration was approved by a unanimous vote. The PNM list includes 55 candidates, while the PSDE list has 64.
It should be noted that the Chișinău Court of Appeals is currently reviewing a request from the Ministry of Justice to limit the activity of the political party "Renaștere," which is part of the "Victorie/Победа" electoral bloc. The action, initiated on July 31, 2025, following a complaint from the CEC, seeks the temporary suspension of the party for financial irregularities, including the submission of incomplete and superficial data in its financial report for the first half of 2025.
The CEC recently notified the Anticorruption Prosecutor's Office about the actions of four political parties, including "Renaștere," during the presidential and referendum campaigns in the fall of 2024. At the same time, the institution ordered "Renaștere" to return 79,128 lei in illegal donations from individuals to the state budget, with the payment deadline set for August 19, 2025.
In addition, the "Victorie-Pobeda" Electoral Bloc — which includes "Renaștere" — was not registered by the CEC to participate in the parliamentary elections on September 28. The decision was made on July 19. According to the central electoral authority, the request for formation, submitted by four parties (the political party "Renaștere," the political party "Forța de Alternativă și de Salvare a Moldovei," the political party "Șansă," and the political party "Victorie"), did not meet the CEC's requests regarding the veracity of the executive body's composition, the bloc's name, the list of members, and the accounting documents for the founding event, which took place on July 6, 2025, in Moscow.
To date, two independent candidates have been registered for the September 28 parliamentary elections — Andrei Năstase and Olesea Stamate — who collected the necessary signatures. Another 18 independent candidates are in the process of collecting signatures. The CEC has also registered six parties: the Action and Solidarity Party, the "Democrația Acasă" Party, the Coalition for Unity and Welfare Party, the Alliance of Liberals and Democrats for Europe Party, the National Moldovan Party, and the European Social Democratic Party. The requests from four electoral blocs and five other parties, including "Renaștere," are currently being reviewed.
The deadline for submitting registration documents for candidates is August 19, 2025, and the election campaign will run from August 29 to September 26, 2025.
Translation by Iurie Tataru
