Voronin replaces Leanca

Communist leader Vladimir Voronin climbed to the third spot in the traditional Moldova's Top-50 Influential Politicians list, replacing Foreign Minister Iurie Leanca. The top spot continues to be occupied by Prime Minister Vlad Filat as Speaker Marian Lupu retained the second place, Info-Prim Neo reports. The list was presented on Friday, March 4, at a news conference by the Strategic Research and Consultancy Center Politicon. The ranking is based on the scores given by a pool of 24 political pundits and analysts to the performance of the Moldovan politicians in February. Politicon head Anatol Taranu says the Center's expert board includes the most relevant members of the expertise community in Moldova in the field of Moldovan politics: political scientists, political commentators and journalists. The evaluation criteria include actual influence on major political decisions, public popularity, visibility in mass media and the politicians' political outlook. The top-10 politicians also include, in descending order, Foreign Minister Iurie Leanca, Liberal leader Mihai Ghimpu, Justice Minister Alexandru Tanase, Senior Deputy Speaker Vladimir Plahotniuc, Chisinau Mayor Dorin Chirtoaca, the Liberal-Democratic faction's leader Mihai Godea, and the Democratic Party's honorary president Dumitru Diacov. Communist MP Igor Dodon ranked 12th, climbing two places. Ex-Prime Minister Ion Sturza climbed six positions to 15th, as Government Secretary Victor Bodiu made the biggest leap – from 35th in January to 17th in February. Each month Politicon compiles Moldova's Top-50 Influential Politicians list, selecting the top 50 from an initial list of 100 politicians.