Nastase to Run Again in Moldovan Mayoral Contest

The leader of the Dignity and Truth Platform Party, PPDA, Andrei Nastase, intends to run again in the new mayoral race for the capital, Chisinau which should take place this summer. Parliament in Moldova has not yet set an exact date for the election.

Nastase won the race last time in June 2018 - but the result was then cancelled by the courts in Chisinau, even though international observers ruled that the elections were free and fair.

"The people of Chisinau have expectations [of us]. We cannot let them down," one of the leaders of PPDA told BIRN, confirming that Nastase intends to enter another mayoral race.

PPDA deputy Octavian Ticu also told a political talk-show on Thursday that Nastase would run again to become mayor of Chisinau. "It is clear that Nastase will run again," said Ticu.

Nastase won the second round of the local elections in Chisinau in June 2018, beating pro-Russian Socialist Party candidate Ion Ceban.

The result was relatively tight. Nastase won 52.57 per cent of votes cast - a total of 129,432 votes - while Ceban won 47.43 per cent, or 116,788 votes, according to the Central Election Commission, CEC. The turnout was 39.12 per cent, the CEC said.

The Moldovan Supreme Court on Monday upheld the June 25 2018 ruling by a local court that invalidated the June 3 local election result.

After the cancellation of the results, politicians in Moldova, the United States and the European Union voiced strong concerns over the independence of the justice system in Moldova.

The cancellation the mayoral results infuriated the EU, and Brussels moved immediately to suspend micro-financial aid of 100 million euros for Moldova.

Over the past two decades, the Chisinau mayoralty has remained in the hands of pro...