The elections for the People’s Assembly of the Autonomous Territorial Unit of Gagauzia revealed two trends – a decrease in the PCRM’s rating and an increase in the influence of the PDM through the agency of the movement “Gagauzia Noua”. The election of the chairman of the People’s Assembly took place in a traditional way, with a certain dose of scandal. This fact shows that a state of confrontation between Mihail Formuzal and Nicolae Dudoglo will persist in the autonomous region. Such an opinion was stated by the political analysts contacted by Info-Prim Neo. [The high number of independent candidates is not something unordinary for Gagauzia] At the elections for the People’s Assembly of Gagauzia, there were chosen 25 independent deputies, seven Communist deputies, two Liberal-Democratic deputies, and a Socialist deputy. The high number of independent candidates is not something unordinary for Gagauzia. Twenty-one independents were selected in the 2008 elections, and 25 in the 1999 elections, as this year,” said political analyst Andrei Iovu. According to him, this is explained by the region’s size, the role of the local leaders, the ethnic determinism, Moldova’s legislation that bans regional parties and the social relations established there. Moreover, the high number of independent candidates is also due to the electoral system of Gagauzia, which is a majority system with two rounds of elections. [Confrontation will persist until 2014] Political analyst Ion Tabarta has told Info-Prim Neo that it is well known that the independent deputies of Gagauzia oscillate between two informal parties – “Gagauzia Noua” and “Gagauzia Unita”. The first of them, which is headed by Nicolae Dudoglo, is close to the Democratic Party of Moldova, especially its first deputy chairman Vladimir Plahotniuc. “Gagauzia Unita” orbits around the Bashkan of Gagauzia Mihail Formuzal. The PCRM is the third political force in Gagauzia. Most probably, this state of confrontation will persist until the legislative elections of 2014, said Ion Tabarta. The closer the elections, the more territory the center parties will try to occupy in Gagauzia. “The left-wing parties will be more active as the Gagauz voters speak Russian and there is a pronounced character of the ethnic vote. The political leaders of the region will attempt to speculate on this so as to obtain more dividends in Chisinau,” stated the analyst. [The PDM aims to strengthen its position in Gagauzia] Political analyst Andrei Iovu said the fact that the PDM did not poll sufficient votes to have representatives in the People’s Assembly shows that this party’s performance in the region should be improved. This is probably the main goal of the PDM – to strengthen its position through the agency of the movement “Gagauzia Noua”. On the other hand, it’s not really right to say that the PDM will have the greatest influence in the region as the Gagauz political leaders want to strengthen their own political movements first of all, so as to ensure the stability of the power and, eventually, to found their own parties and detach themselves in a way from the national political parties, said the analyst. [A reconfiguration of power is possible] Andrei Iovu said the previous elections revealed that the independent candidates show their political affiliation mainly when there are constituted the executive bodies. This time they will most probably follow the same scenario. “On the one hand, this thing offers maneuvering space to the current Bashkan, who can negotiate the formation of an alliance in order to secure political support in the People’s Assembly. On the other hand, we can witness a reconfiguration of the power when they will try to limit the Bashkan’s authority. This scenario is more probable given that the post of chairman of the People’s Assembly will be held by a representative of “Gagauzia Noua”, which is an opponent of “Gagauzia Unita” that supports the current Bashkan,” stated Andrei Iovu. According to him, the power reconfiguration process can last for several months. However, the Bashkan will anyway remain the supreme official of Gagauzia, who has authority over all the public administration authorities of the autonomous region. This fact gives him an advantage.