Republic of Moldova: President, 30 October 2016

At stake in this election:

• The office of the President of the Moldova

Description of government structure:

• Chief of State: President Nicolae TIMOFTI (since 23 March 2012)[1]
• Head of Government: Prime Minister Pavel FILIP (since 20 January 2016)
• Assembly: Moldova has a unicameral Parliament composed of 101 seats.

Description of electoral system:

• The president of Moldova is directly elected, in two rounds if needed, for a 4-year term with eligibility for a second term.

Last Election:

• The last presidential election was held on 16 March 2012. Independent candidate Nicolae TIMOFTI was elected president by members of parliament with 61.4% of the vote.

Note: The presidential election in 2016 will be the first direct election for the president of Moldova since 1996. The Constitutional Court ruled that a revision to the constitution allowing members of parliament to elect the president was unconstitutional.

Main candidates in the election:

• Igor DODON
  • Party: Socialist Party/Partidul Socialiștilor din Republica Moldova
• Vladimir PLAHOTNIUC
  • Party: Democratic Party/Partidul Democrat din Moldova
• Mihai GHIMPU
  • Party: Liberal Party/Partidul Liberal
• Maia SANDU
  • Party: Action and Solidarity Party/Partidul Acțiune și Solidaritate
• Andrei NĂSTASE
  • Party: Dignity and Truth/Partidul Platforma Demnitate şi Adevăr
• Marian LUPU
  • Party: Democratic Party of Moldova/Partidul Democrat din Moldova
• Iurie IEANCĂ
  • Party: European People’s Party of Moldova/Partidul Popular European din Moldova
• Dumitru CIUBAŞENCO
  • Party: Our Party/Partidul Nostru
• Valeriu GHILEŢCHI
  • Party: Independent

Population and number of registered voters:

·         Population: 3,546,847 (July 2015 est.)

·         Registered Voters: 2,956,270 (2014)

Gender Data:

·         Female Population: 1,821,344 (July 2015 est.)

·         Is Moldova a signatory to CEDAW: No

·         Has Moldova ratified CEDAW: Yes, accession (1 July 1994)

·         Gender Quota: No

·         Female candidates in this election: Yes

·         Number of Female Parliamentarians: 21 (20.79%)

·         Human Development Index Position: 107

·         Social Institutions and Gender Index (SIGI) Categorization: Low

Disability Data:

·         Is Moldova a signatory to CRPD: Yes (30 March 2007)

·         Has Moldova ratified CRPD: Yes (21 September 2010)

·         Population with a disability: 532,027 (est.)