CEC accused of double standards and discrimination of voters in France

The members of the electoral bureau of polling place No. 1/316 from Paris, France, and 14 persons who have voted at this polling place demand that the secretary of the Central Election Commission (CEC) Iurie Ciocan be dismissed, accusing him of misconduct in office with serious consequences, obstruction of the constitutional right to vote of the Moldovan citizens and discriminatory policy, Info-Prim Neo reports, quoting an open letter to the CEC chairman Eugeniu Stirbu. The letter says the members of the electoral bureau of the given polling place on November 23 warned the CEC the allotted number of ballots was too low and demanded 1,000 ballots more. On the election day, the number of voters was on the rise and the members of the polling place repeatedly asked Iurie Ciocan by different methods to do something, but no answer followed. Ultimately, they proposed allowing the persons to vote on A4 sheets and the CEC accepted the method. The voting process continued starting with 18.30 and was extended by 23.00. The letter also says that 525 voters cast their votes according to this exceptional procedure, but other hundreds of voters did not wait for the results of the negotiations and went away. A similar situation was reported at the polling places in Moscow, Rome, and Padova. The members of the electoral bureau of polling place No. 1/316 expressed their bewilderment at the fact that the number of voters at the three polling places established in France does not exceed 2,250. Moreover, in a news conference Iurie Ciocan implied that the 919 votes cast on A4 sheets abroad do not hold interest as they cannot significantly affect the election outcome. At the same time, the voting reports published by the CEC show that 3,147 Moldovans voted in Moscow with 3,000 ballots sent there. This means that the “A4” votes cast in Moscow were taken into account. The posted results point to a clear ‘double standard’ policy and open discrimination of the Moldovan voters in France and Italy, it is said in the letter. CEC secretary Iurie Ciocan stated for Info-Prim Neo that the given letter is based on emotions, not on legal arguments. He said that he received no information about the insufficiency of ballots. “What is said in that letter is not true,” said the secretary. As to the votes cast on A4 sheet, Iurie Ciocan said he never stated the votes from Moscow will be accepted, while those from Paris will be rejected.