The legislative body didn’t manage to approve the candidates of eight of the nine new members of the Central Election Commission (CEC) because the Socialist MPs expressed their dissatisfaction with the proportionality and asked to have one more representative on the Commission, IPN reports.

Raisa Apolschii, author of the draft decision and head of the legal commission for appointments and immunities, said in Parliament that they decided to notify the National Integrity Commission so that this decides if the Socialists’ candidate Maxim Lebedinschi is involved in a conflict of interests given that he is the brother of an MP.

Socialist MP Adrian Lebedinschi said he asked himself the Commission to examine the situation. He also submitted a statement by which he informs that he will refrain from voting the new CEC members.

Communist MP Oleg Reidman said the appointment of Eduard Raducan is illegal as this was recently named director of the National Center for Personal Data Protection and he is thus incompatible. Afterward, the Communist MPs expressed their dissatisfaction with the fact that they could field only one candidate for CEC member. The Socialists asked for a pause and then proposed one more candidate – Vadim Filipov.

Speaker of Parliament Andrian Candu suggested postponing the vote on the issue so that the legal commission could decide on the possible conflicts of interest and on the proportionality of candidates.

The draft decision proposes reappointing outgoing CEC members Vasile Gafton, Eduard Raducan and Andrei Volentir and appointing former Deputy Minister of Justice Sergiu Gurduz, Chisinau councilman and Socialists’ chief jurist Maxim Lebedinschi, parliamentary adviser Veaceslav Agrigoroae, jurist Rodica Ciubotaru, and head of the Communist group leader’s office Alina Russu.