Upon the invitation of the Central Electoral Commission, on 1 June the European Network of Election Monitoring Organizations (ENEMO) deployed an International Election Observation Mission (IEOM) to Moldova to observe the Early Parliamentary Elections of 11 July 2021. This was ENEMO’s fifth mission to Moldova.

ENEMO accredited eight core team (CT) experts and ten long-term observers (LTOs). Due to health risks created by the COVID-19 pandemic, the IEOM operated partially remotely, with only a part of the CT deployed in the country. LTOs were additionally deployed in Moldova for Election Day to observe a selected number of polling stations. ENEMO observed the opening of polling stations, and voting and counting processes at 158 polling stations, representing 7.9 per cent of the total number of polling stations in Moldova. The mission monitored and assessed the overall political and electoral environment, sessions and conduct of election management bodies, campaigning, gender equity, voting and tabulation processes, electoral dispute resolution, and other crucial aspects of the process, based on international standards for democratic elections and the Moldovan legal framework.

The IEOM conducted 738 meetings, 274 with election management bodies, 98 with political parties, 58 with candidates, 94 with state officials, 59 with media, 138 with domestic CSOs and 17 with other stakeholders, in addition to observing 23 campaign activities (meetings or rallies).

Based on the monitoring carried out and meetings with various stakeholders, on 30 June the IEOM issued an Interim Report and on 11 July its Statement of Preliminary Findings and Conclusions.

The present Final Report is based on ENEMO’s findings from the pre-election period, Election Day and the post-election period, in addition to interviews with stakeholders, and analysis of the legal framework and other relevant information received by the mission in the course of monitoring. The report contains 50 recommendations addressed to different stakeholders to eradicate identified shortcomings and improve the legal framework and practice in accordance with international standards. ENEMO would like to express its gratitude to all interlocutors of the mission, representatives of public institutions; electoral management bodies and especially the Central Electoral Commission; election contestants; civil society; media; the international community; and all other organizations and individuals for their cooperation and support.

Disclaimer: ENEMO’s international election observation mission for the 11 July 2021 Early Parliamentary Elections in Moldova is financially supported by the Delegation of the European Union, the National Democratic Institute and Kingdom of the Netherlands. The content of the document is the sole responsibility of ENEMO and does not necessarily represent the position of the donors.