Parliament managed to elect head of state only two times over 11 years

During 11 years from 2000, since when the head of state has been elected by Parliament, the lawmakers succeeded in electing the President two times – in 2001 and 2005. In both of the cases, the post was taken up by the leader of the Communist Party Vladimir Voronin. ● The amendments made to the Constitution of Moldova [on July 5, 2000] provided for the election of the head of state in Parliament. The MPs rejected the initiatives of the then President Petru Lucinschi, who proposed strengthening the presidential power. His initiatives enjoyed considerable popular support and were approved by 55.3% of the participants in the referendum of May 23, 1999. The final text of the amendment law consisted of several bills. The special parliamentary commission set up for the purpose was headed by Deputy Speaker Vadim Misin, a Communist MP who, together with Vladimir Voronin, pleaded personally for the inclusion of a norm of 3/5 of the votes of MP required to elect the head of state (61 votes). The commission also supported the inclusion of an additional norm allowing dissolving Parliament if it fails to elect the President. ● [On April 4, 2001], Vladimir Voronin was voted in as head of state by the votes 71 Communist MPs, of the 89 lawmakers attending. The candidates for the presidency included Vladimir Voronin, Valerian Cristea and Dumitru Braghis. The other two candidates polled 3 and, respectively, 15 votes. ● Four years later, [in July 2005], Voronin was reelected head of state by 75 votes of the Communist, Christian-Democrat, Democrat and Social-Liberal MPs. The Communist leader Vladimir Voronin was the first candidate registered for the post of head of state. He was fielded by a group of 34 Communist lawmakers. The other parliamentary groups did not put forward candidates. In order to fulfill the condition that there should be at least two candidates, another 16 Communist MPs proposed the president of the Academy of Sciences of Moldova Gheorghe Duca. A number of 56 Communist MPs, eight Democrat MPs, 11 Christian-Democrat lawmakers, and three Social-Liberal lawmakers took part in the voting. Eighteen MPs of the former Democratic Moldova Bloc, which was transformed into the Moldova Noastra Alliance, abstained, while another five MPs of the Alliance were absent. Seventy-five of the 78 MPs who cast their ballots voted for Vladimir Voronin. His opponent Gheorghe Duca obtained one vote, while two ballots were declared invalid. ● Four years later, after the April 5 parliamentary elections, the PCRM gained 60 seats of MP. The three opposition parliamentary groups – the PL, PLDM and AMN – declared they do not recognize the results of the elections and will thus not take part in the election of the President. That way they caused early elections. [On May 20, 2009], there was held the first round of voting. The PCRM used the same scheme as in 2005, suggesting two candidates: Zinaida Greceanyi, ex-Premier, and Stanislav Groppa, a neurologist and correspondent member of the Academy of Sciences. Zinaida Greceanyi polled 60 votes, while Stanislav Groppa no vote. The then opposition (the PL, PLDM and AMN) did not take part in the voting. ● The elections were to be rerun in two weeks, [on May 28, 2009], but the Ascension was celebrated that day and the voting was postponed until June 3, at the suggestion of the leader of the Communist group Maria Postoico. Most of the MPs said it was not opportune to make political statements that day. The Communists in fact asked putting off the voting in order to look for the ‘golden vote’. ● [On June 3, 2009] there was held the second round of voting. Zinaida Greceanyi’s opponent was then Andrei Neguta, a Communist MP in 2001-2005. Zinaida Greceanyi earned 60 votes, while Andrei Neguta no vote. The opposition again did not take part in the vote. Vladimir Voronin said that preconditions were created for dissolving Parliament. The legislature was dissolved and there were called early elections. After the July 29 elections, there appeared a new parliamentary majority. [On August 28], the leader of the Liberal Party Mihai Ghimpu was elected Speaker. He also held the post of President of Moldova on an interim basis. ● [On October 30, 2009], the legislative body adopted amendments to the law on the procedure for electing the head of state, whereby there were specified a number of aspects that later aroused controversy. It was created the possibility of holding the elections with only one candidate. There were specified the conditions allowing postponing the special sitting for electing the head of state without considering the elections as failed. There was included a provision saying the next dissolution of Parliament is possible only after a year of the last dissolution. ● In the November 3, 2009 sitting, the legislature adopted a decision, setting the presidential elections for November 10, 2009. By November 6, when the new deadline for registering candidates expired, there was registered only one candidate – the head of the Democratic Party Marian Lupu, on behalf of the Alliance for European Integration. [On November 10, 2009], a quorum was present at the special sitting, but the Communist MPs boycotting the voting. Marian Lupu polled 53 of the votes of the MPs representing the government coalition. Under the legislation, if a candidate does not obtain 3/5 of the votes in the first round, the second round is held within 30 days under the same procedural rules. ● [On December 7, 2009], the Alliance for European Integration tried again to vote Marian Lupu in, but failed. No other attempt was made since then to elect the head of state. On November 28, 2010, there were held parliamentary elections. Since December 30, 2010, the new Speaker Marian Lupu has held the post of head of state on an interim basis. In the Parliament’s plenary sitting of October 20, 2011, the Acting President initiated the procedure for electing the head of state. The presidential elections were set for November 18.