Promo-LEX Association recommends Parliament to review its initiative concerning the possibility of holding simultaneously a national referendum and parliamentary or presidential elections in connection with the reexamination of the draft law, which was included in the agenda of the plenary sitting of January 18. According to Promo-LEX, the simultaneous holding of referendums and elections for different elective offices can affect the free expression of the will of the people both during the referendum and during the elections, IPN reports.
In a press release, the Association says that Article 184 para. (2) of the Electoral Code, which stipulates that a national referendum cannot take place concurrently with parliamentary, presidential and general local elections, should not be amended as its provisions are in accordance with the recommendations of benchmark European institutions in the field of democracy and of international and national election observation missions.
The amendment to this article, which makes it possible to hold a national referendum and presidential and parliamentary elections on the same day, was adopted (on December 28, 2023) by ignoring the legislation on decision-making transparency. Also, from the argumentation presented by the author of the amendment, the reasons for amending the legislation are not clear.
The subject of European integration is one of strategic public interest for Moldova, which should not be “adopted” or “monopolized” for electoral purposes by a particular political force. The fact that the initiative to organize the referendum simultaneously with the presidential election comes from a future election contender can favor this candidate against other candidates.
The importance of the European path for Moldova’s future as a democratic state and society has been demonstrated in time by a number of governments of different political colors. Also, at least 28 (45%) political parties out of the 63 registered, according to the website of the Public Services Agency, stipulate the “European integration” desideratum in their statutes.
If the Parliament or other public authority decides yet to initiate a referendum for autumn 2024, simultaneously with the presidential election, this should be a constitutional one, which would produce binding legal effects, given the topic of major national interest of the projected referendum. A possible constitutional referendum would involve supplementing the Constitution with rules to guarantee the European path of the Republic of Moldova and would be therefore more justified in terms of legal effects and organizational costs, noted Promo-LEX.
