Following an invitation from the Central Election Commission of the Republic of Moldova, on 1 October 2023, the European Network of Election Monitoring Organizations deployed an International Election Observation Mission (EOM), to observe the Local Elections of 5 November 2023 in Moldova. This was ENEMO’s 40th Election Observation Mission and the 6th in Moldova. 

The EOM was composed of four Core Team experts, based in Chisinau, and four long-term observers, deployed in two teams, based in Balti and Comrat, and covering, respectively, the north and the south of the country. The mission observed both rounds of elections, held on 5 and 19 November. No additional short-term observers joined the Mission on election day, for neither of the rounds. The Mission was headed by Dritan Taulla. 

The aim of the EOM was to improve the transparency of the election process and assess its integrity and compatibility with international obligations of Moldova and standards for democratic elections, as well as the domestic legislative framework. The EOM observed and assessed the overall environment in which elections took place, the right to elect and stand for election, the conduct of election management bodies, campaigning and campaign finance, election dispute resolution, gender equality, inclusion of national minorities and persons with disabilities, and other crucial aspects of the process. On election days, Core Team experts and long-term observers observed the voting, counting, and tabulation of results in a limited number of polling stations. 

The Final Report is based on ENEMO’s findings on the national level and throughout the regions, starting from 1 October, as well as key post-election developments, until the end of December. Parts of the findings precede the deployment date and are based on publicly available information, as well as information gathered from the Mission’s interlocutors. ENEMO observers conducted over 400 meetings with various interlocutors, including election management bodies, political parties and candidates, state officials, media, domestic civil society organizations, representatives of the international community, including diplomatic corps and international organizations operating in Moldova, etc. 

Throughout the duration of the Mission, the EOM published an interim report and two statements of preliminary findings and conclusions, respectively after the first and second round of elections. 

ENEMO would like to express its gratitude to electoral management bodies, election contestants, representatives of public institutions, civil society, media, international community, and all other entities and individuals that cooperated with the mission. 

The ENEMO EOM for the 2023 Local Elections in Moldova was financially supported by the Delegation of the European Union to the Republic of Moldova, the Embassy of the Kingdom of the Netherlands, and the Soros Foundation Moldova. The contents of this publication are the sole responsibility of ENEMO and do not necessarily reflect the views of the donors.