Moldova's President rejects Electoral Code amendment
President Maia Sandu has refused to promulgate the law amending the Electoral Code, passed by Parliament at the end of last year, and has sent it for reconsideration.
The head of state disagrees with the provisions regarding the establishment of the election date for the President of the Republic of Moldova. Simultaneously, Promo-LEX experts argue that this is a technical modification, and the association recommends Parliament to review its initiative regarding the possibility of holding a republican referendum concurrently with parliamentary or presidential elections.
President Maia Sandu has rejected the law amending the Electoral Code, voted on by Parliament at the end of last year, and has sent it for reconsideration. According to the changes made to the Electoral Code, the election date for the President of the Republic of Moldova is determined by Parliament's decision, at least 90 days before the elections. According to the president, for the predictability of the electoral process and the organisation of free, fair, and transparent elections, the date should be set earlier than the 90-day period before the ballot.
At the same time, the Promo-LEX association recommends Parliament to review its initiative regarding the possibility of holding a republican referendum concurrently with parliamentary or presidential elections, along with the reconsideration of the bill, included in the plenary session agenda on January 18, stated Nicolae Panfil, the Program Director at Promo-LEX, for Radio Moldova.
"I understand that one of the arguments for reconsideration was to have the same wording in the Electoral Code and the Constitution because in one place it talks about 2 months, and in another place, it talks about 60 days or something like that. At the same time, I stated in today's opinion that, indeed, in terms of constitutional provisions, there is no such prohibition, so Parliament, ultimately being the legislator, can decide this. Of course, we are concerned that the deadline for amending the Electoral Code, namely one year before the elections, is not being respected, which we talk about every time," stated Nicolae Panfil.
The reconsideration of the bill is included in the Parliament's agenda on January 18, calling for an extraordinary session.
It is worth mentioning that the changes made to the Electoral Code were made at the end of last year. Thus, it was decided that the republican referendum could be organised on the day of parliamentary and presidential elections. Changes were also made to transparentize information regarding the financing of the electoral campaign and the activities of political parties, as well as the applicability of Electoral Code provisions regarding the period for holding presidential elections.
Translation by Iurie Tataru
