CHISINAU – Moldova voted yesterday on whether to elect its president directly, a change the pro-western ruling coalition says could end a political impasse, but the poll’s validity appeared to be under threat from low turnout.
Opinion surveys have predicted a vote in favour of ditching the present system, under which the head of state is elected by parliament, despite a call by the opposition Communists for a boycott of the referendum.
But by 4.45pm – with polling stations due to close at 9pm – election authorities put turnout at a low 21 per cent, well short of the 33 per cent required for the vote to be valid.
The Communists, ousted by the ruling four-party Alliance for European Integration in July 2009 elections, said voters had rallied to Communist leader Vladimir Voronin’s boycott call.
One official close to the alliance conceded turnout was low, but said there was still time for a surge of voters. He foresaw a final turnout of between 33 and 35 per cent. Many Moldovans traditionally prefer to vote in the second half of the day. Moldova has had no full-time president for 18 months, with the alliance unable to muster enough parliamentary votes to install a head of state, despite ousting the Communists.
The alliance says this has held up reforms that are urgently needed to bring the ex-Soviet state, one of Europe’s poorest, into the mainstream. It promises direct elections for president and parliament on November 14th if the referendum succeeds. – (Reuters)