Following the invitation of the authorities of the Republic of Moldova, the Observer Mission of the Organization for Democracy and Economic Development – GUAM took part in the early elections to the Parliament of the Republic of Moldova, held on July 11, 2021.
The Observer Group was composed of the following members of the national delegations to the GUAM Parliamentary Assembly: Mr E. Allahverdiyev, the Parliament (Milli Majlis) of the Republic of Azerbaijan, Mr G. Khelashvili (Head of the Group) and Mr D. Matikashvili, Parliament of Georgia, Mr S. Yurash and Ms A. Zahoruiko, Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine. The Group was accompanied by the GUAM Secretary General Mr A. Efendiev.
The mission was limited and focused on general observation and assessment of the organization and administration of the electoral process on the day of voting, namely – the situation in and around the polling stations, the composition of the electoral commissions at the polling stations, organization of the balloting, conditions at the polling stations, ensuring the free and secret expression of the will of voters, transparency of the balloting process, presence of the observers from political parties, media, independent observers/civil society, etc.
Based on the observation results at several polling stations in the central districts of Chișinău, the GUAM observers decided to make the following Statement:
The elections to the Parliament of the Republic of Moldova were organized and conducted in accordance with international obligations and standards for democratic elections, including the OSCE and the Council of Europe commitments and standards, as well as the national legislation, rules, and regulations, and instructions elaborated by the Central Electoral Commission of the Republic of Moldova.
Elections were organized and held on a competitive basis in a calm and orderly manner. Prescribed voting procedures were mostly followed, the balloting process was well organized and transparent. However, the turnout of the voters at the observed polling stations was moderate to low.
Concerning the general electoral process, the organization of elections, and the activities of commissions at electoral precincts, the comments on individual electoral precincts that the GUAM Observer Group has are not fundamental, and they cannot significantly affect the voting results.
The GUAM Observer Group is satisfied with the monitoring results. It concludes that judged by the organization and administration of the electorate process on the day of voting, fundamentals rights and freedoms were overall respected. The elections can be assessed as free and fair.
Chișinău, 11 July 2021
