“The low voter turnout, especially among the young people, is regrettable. I don’t think it is right for the future during the next four years to be decided by a particular section of the population,“ the president of the Central Election Commission (CEC) Iurie Ciocan said in the program “Public eye” on Noroc TV channel, IPN reports.

Iurie Ciocan stated that ten video clips urging the people to take part in elections were produced. “These videos were made with the money of the foreign partners. We contributed 10% of the costs. It is regrettable that they didn’t have the expected effect. Probably many will be disappointed. In general, the elections were held in a correct manner, despite a number of incidents,” he said.

He also said he is against making voting mandatory in order to prevent the low turnout in the future. “This would be a stupidity. The state would be obliged to ensure the best conditions for exercising the right to vote. We know that a large part of our people are outside the country. For them, the state would be obliged to ensure free transport to the country on the election day. Huge costs would be incurred,” stated the CEC president.

As to the results of the elections in Balti and Orhei, where Renato Usatyi and Ilan Shor won the elections overwhelmingly, Ciocan said this shows that the CEC is not politically manipulated and that the elections are not rigged. “We have two stars with a lot of money, but also with a lot of criminal cases started against them. But this is the wish of the people who voted for them. If they are ultimately found guilty and are jailed, early elections in the given settlements will be held. Additional money will be spent, but the human rights cannot be measured in money,” he stated.