The voters in Moldova can be easily manipulated with simple, tangible things, with phrases and promises. “Being less prepared, especially in villages, the voters make a choice in favor of the local ruling party because they are afraid to vote for the candidate they like for fear the village mayor will anyway see,” dean of the Faculty of Psychology, Education Sciences and Social Assistance of the Moldova Free International University Svetlana Rusnac stated in the electoral public debate “Specific features of the presidential elections 2016: vision of NGOs and experts”, which forms part of the series “What kind of President is society looking for? What society does the President need?”, held by IPN News Agency.
According to Svetlana Rusnac, the most active voters from villages went abroad and thus conscious activism should be aroused among the population from towns and among the youth. The most active voters in Moldova are those who perceive the elections as a holiday and do not know who to vote for and also those who are persuaded by the current candidates and these are more or less active.
Svetlana Rusnac stated that for many voters the citizenship identity is related to the cemetery because those who went abroad return home only on Easter and Low Sunday and this is the result of the national policies or rather of their absence, of the inefficient or inexistent work with young people, including in forming the political spirit. “I think that during 25 years of the declaration of Moldova’s independence, there was destroyed a mentality that existed at the start and that was manifested by interest in changes and modernization. The critical and analytical spirit in our country was destroyed because they placed emphasis on sterile information here. The population should get rid of fears as they often vote not for, but against a particular evil,” she said.
As to the nontraditional voting tendencies typical of the last local elections, she said that she does not think we will witness something unordinary in the October 30 presidential elections because the candidates do not include persons with considerable wealth who would give the communities the impression that they can be used to solve particular problems, like Ilan Shor and Renato Usatyi.
As regards voter preferences, Svetlana Rusnac said these mainly want a President with Western orientation. She noted she has long supported the idea that a woman should be chosen as Head of State because the women are more radical, more honest and do not rob so much, not because they are afraid, but because they are more corporative. “The women are not so scared and his is sometimes risky as they do not have many bodyguards and do not necessarily live in palaces,” she stated, adding that the future President will definitely be young for a Head of State, slightly over 40, and will come with radical slogans as the people usually vote such persons.
The September 28 public debate is the 63rd installment of the series of debates “Developing political culture by public debates” that are organized by IPN News Agency with the assistance of the German Foundation “Hanns Seidel”.
