The Congress of Local Authorities of Moldova (CALM) said that electoral bodies’ decisions to invalidate the seats of mayor are acts of abuse and abuse of power with elements of subjectivism and politicization. It submitted its statement to the Central Election Commission, the Government and the Parliament and also to the Council of Europe. In its document, the CALM repeatedly asks to stop the abusive actions to invalidate the seats of mayor post-factum taken by district electoral bodies, IPN reports.

The CALM gives the example of the mayor elected in Bubuieci commune. The reason invoked for the invalidation of the seat is that the elected mayor doesn’t have the necessary level of education, even if the candidate was admitted to the election campaign. “At present, when there is the voter’s will, this decision is counterposed to particular administrative documents and is unpredictable and even abusive in character,” runs the statement.

“We noted that such actions, besides seriously affecting the people’s will and the constitutional right to vote and to stand for election, do not contain any justified legal reason and even run counter to the legal powers of these bodies. We see a repeat of the situation witnessed before the elections and on which the Central Election Commission already pronounced and even the courts of law pronounced and permitted to take part in the election campaign. This way, what right a hierarchically inferior body has to reconsider the given case and to adopt a contrary decision on the same issue?” noted the Congress.

The CALM reiterated that the courts of law should correctly assess these cases. It called on the responsible electoral and legislative state authorities to intervene and stop the abusive actions of the district electoral bodies. It also requested to amend the legislation and restore the practice by which the local elections and the seats of mayors and local councilors were validated by a professional and neutral player, which is now the court of law.