Presidential Election, 1 November 2020

Press conference: Second round

Press conference: First round

Following an official invitation from the authorities of the Republic of Moldova, ODIHR has deployed an election observation activity to the 1 November 2020 presidential election. This is based on the findings and conclusions of the Needs Assessment Mission deployed from 17 to 21 August, and in accordance with ODIHR's mandate.

Long-term observation

The mission, headed by Corien Jonker, consists of 10 international experts based in Chisinau. In addition, 24 long-term observers are deployed throughout the country - starting with 30 September 2020.

The mission will assess the presidential election for its compliance with OSCE commitments, other international obligations and standards for democratic elections, as well as with national legislation.

Observers will closely monitor all aspects of the election, including possible post-election developments. Specific aspects include the implementation of the amended legal framework, candidate registration, the campaign, election dispute resolution and election media coverage. They will also assess how prior ODIHR election-related recommendations have been considered.

The ODIHR observation mission and the OSCE Mission to Moldova operate separately under their specific mandates.

Election day

While ODIHR originally requested 200 short-term observers to be deployed prior to the 1 November election, the extraordinary circumstances caused by the COVID-19 pandemic and existing travel restrictions throughout the OSCE region have negatively affected the ability of the OSCE participating States to second short-term observers. This has resulted in a significant shortfall, which made infeasible the deployment of short-term observers in sufficient numbers for meaningful observation of election day procedures, especially given the logistical difficulties posed by the COVID-19 pandemic.

Therefore, ODIHR took the decision to change the format of the observation activity from an Election Observation Mission (EOM) to a Limited Election Observation Mission (LEOM).

While the mission will visit a limited number of polling stations on election day, systematic observation of voting, counting or tabulation of results on election day is not envisaged. 

Cooperation 

The Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe intends to deploy observer delegations for this election.

The day after the election, ODIHR, together with its parliamentary partners, will issue a statement of preliminary findings and conclusions at a press conference. A final report on the observation of the entire electoral process will be issued approximately eight weeks after the end of the observation mission.

Previous elections

ODIHR has previously observed 13 elections in Moldova. Most recently, ODIHR deployed an Election Observation Mission for the 24 February 2019 parliamentary elections.