CEC decision: 12 polling stations to open for 28 September elections for voters from left bank of Dniester

During the parliamentary elections on 28 September, 12 polling stations will be established for voters from localities on the left bank of the Dniester. The decision was approved at 24 August meeting of the Central Electoral Commission (CEC).

Thus, the Commission decided to organize 12 polling stations for the parliamentary elections for citizens eligible to vote from localities on the left bank of the Dniester, as well as for those residing in the municipality of Bender and in the commune of Chițcani, Cremenciug and Gâsca villages, Căușeni district, which are currently outside the sovereign control of the constitutional authorities of the Republic of Moldova.

The project was presented by CEC deputy head Pavel Postica, who said at the meeting that the main basis for the establishment of polling stations on the left bank of the Dniester is the data from the State Register of Voters, related to the dynamics of voter participation from localities on the left bank of the Dniester in the last three elections.


“In a response of 13 August from the Reintegration Policy Office, it is mentioned that, given the involvements in the security zone and the increasingly visible attempts by external factors to use the region for destabilizing Moldova, it is recommended to pay much more attention than in the past to security risks, actions in previous elections in the Transnistrian region have demonstrated major risks due to the impossibility of combating attempts of electoral bribery and organized transportation, signaling cases of influencing decisions in favor of certain electoral competitors, and the number of polling stations should be determined by risk analysis conducted by responsible institutions,” said Pavel Postica.


According to him, in the response provided by the CEC on August 18, the General Police Inspectorate (IGP) proposed organizing nine polling stations on the left bank of the Dniester and “highlighted certain security risks, such as voter manipulation, misinformation, and external influences, attempts at fraud, organized transportation of voters, access blocking, provocations on travel routes.” “The SIS response reiterated the same risks outlined by colleagues from the IGP and considered that eight polling stations should be organized for voters from the left bank of the Dniester,” emphasized Postica.

He said that based on the analysis of the maximum average presence at the last three elections of voters from the left bank of the Dniester, it is proposed to open 12 polling stations.


“The Commission notes that even if we consider the maximum average presence in the last three elections, namely 28,954 voters, a figure comparable to the turnout in 2021 parliamentary elections, and we calculate this maximum figure for which a polling station is opened, i.e., 3,000 people, we find that this number of people can be served at 10 polling stations. From this consideration, such an estimated maximum flow can be optimally managed at the 12 polling stations proposed to be opened,” emphasized Pavel Postica.


CEC President Angelica Caraman said that the dynamics of voter participation from the left bank of the Dniester is decreasing in the last elections.


“If we strictly adhere to what the Electoral Code says, namely the dynamics of participation, the logistics of organization, therefore the dynamic is decreasing: in 2020 – 31,700 voters, 2021 – 28,700 voters, and in the last elections - 26,000 voters. We are talking about objective things. At a polling station, there are 35 voters, at another station – 64, at three other stations in total 660 voters. So you can easily set up a single polling station to cover all voter needs. We are talking about things that are on the surface,” noted CEC President Angelica Caraman.


In the context of examining the project, two CEC members proposed the opening of 30 or 20 polling stations for voters from the left bank of the Dniester. However, these proposals were not supported by CEC members. Additionally, a CEC member proposed that the voting process at the 12 polling stations be organized over two days, an initiative that was similarly rejected by the CEC.

According to statistics, in the snap polls of 2021, fewer than 30,000 voters from the Transnistrian region voted, and in the presidential elections of 2024 – about 26,000. During the period, the number of open polling stations also decreased – from 41 in 2021 to only 30 in 2024.